


Convergence of Fates

by Wolfkeeper989



Series: Healing of Universal Scars [1]
Category: Kingdom Hearts
Genre: 0-60 in a heartbeat, Action/Adventure, Alternate Universe-No birth by sleep etc, Angst with a Happy Ending, F/M, Fluff and Angst, Guess it is a Fix it Fic?, Minor Character Death, Romance, Starts After KH2
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2019-02-20
Updated: 2019-05-15
Packaged: 2019-10-31 21:48:00
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence
Chapters: 5
Words: 32,792
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/17857559
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Wolfkeeper989/pseuds/Wolfkeeper989
Summary: When King Mickey invites the Destiny Island wielders on an information gathering trip, Sora is skeptical. Given that Heartless research had led to a whole bunch of problems for him and his friends, he has every right to be. His reservations are proven to be correct when the group takes off for their first stop. Everything goes wrong almost instantaneously. Creatures hound them at the gates and a villain unleashes a world killing weapon that the gang barely manages to escape. Things become even more complicated when they discover there’s a group specifically targeting them and destroying the worlds they come in contact with. With their lists of problems growing and allies shrinking, Sora and the others have to race against time to find out where this weapon came from and put an end to it, to prevent interstellar war from breaking out.  And this is before hopefully finding time to stop the forces of Darkness before they manage to plunge the worlds into the dark again.





	1. Going Under

**Author's Note:**

> Hi all! This is my first Kingodom Hearts fic on AO3! This is a story idea I had for a while but wasn’t sure where to go with it. But I had a chance to go back tweak some things and add some ideas! I think this should be a fun journey! Gonna warn you now, though... this story hits the ground running and won't slow down for a while! Also, thanks to [dexterously](https://archiveofourown.org/users/dexterously/pseuds/dexterously) for being an awesome beta!

Sora stretched in his seat and stared out the window of the cockpit. Stars were everywhere. There seemed to be no end to them, but Sora didn’t mind. They were approaching the gateway to they would need to pass through to get to Atlantica. He felt excitement beginning to grow inside him. Sora could not wait to see Ariel or even King Triton again. He had missed his other friends; it had been two years, after all. A sense of wonder took hold as he thought back on the amazing adventures he had and wonderful friends he made.

Of course, none could hold a candle to Riku or Kairi. They were family to him. Riku was basically his way-too-proud older brother, and Kairi… Kairi was… very important to him. He knew in his heart that she meant the world to him, but the word “sister” did not fit the feelings he had for the redhead. Yet, any words that might fit required Sora to do some more thinking. Thankfully, he would have quite a while to think as they would be traveling for a bit. The group was currently planning to revisit all of Sora’s old friends to make sure everything was still stable with the worlds after all the Nobody business. King Mickey said that he really wanted a chance to study the other worlds, too. Sora frowned at the thought. He did not mind checking up on old friends, but the studying part made him a little uneasy.

After all, Ansem’s and later Xehanort’s research caused the rampage of the Heartless. Then that rampage lead to the creation of Nobodies, Organization XIII, and Xemnas. Also, it left his home forever changed… Honestly, he wished that they could just leave the whole heart research deal alone. His initial impulse was to destroy the letter. He couldn’t risk losing everything again. But seeing that the King had asked for all three of them, Sora decided that he should at least let Riku and Kai decide for themselves, so he had taken his concerns and the letter to them. They both urged him to talk to the King and let things stay in the past where they belonged.

Kairi had just recently gotten involved in the heartless fight. She was not as weary and skeptical of the whole thing as he was, and urged him to trust the King. He did seem to have everyone’s best interests at heart. When she said that, Sora was reminded of something he had overheard Pain say when he had been sneaking around in the Underworld with Auron: “The road to Tartarus was always paved with good intentions…”

Riku, on the other hand, had understood his reservations. However, he too urged Sora to investigate thoroughly before working himself up about it. Then, if it seemed that Mickey was becoming obsessed in the wrong way, he promised that he would help Sora get the King back on track. After all, the King was Riku’s friend, too. So, with Riku’s promise of help, Sora agreed to help.

Within a week of replying to the King’s message, the King’s gummi ship came and picked them up. The teenage hero was pulled from his thoughts when a beeping came from the console in front of him. He immediately lost his dreamy demeanor and began the sequence that would prepare the hold below for launch. Donald had taught him how to ages ago.

“Hey Donald, we’re approaching the gate. Why don’t you go and let the rest know that it’s time to change ships while I get ready?” Sora said as he continued working the controls. Donald, who was in the chair next to him, nodded and walked over to where Riku, Kairi, King Mickey, and Goofy stood gazing out the windows.

“Come on guys, the gate’s coming up and we gotta get ready to launch the Gummi Ship.” said Donald. They all looked at him and nodded, walking to the cockpit where Sora was. He turned around as they all walked in.

“We have to change ships,” Sora explained to Riku and Kairi. “The ship we are currently in is too big. There are smaller ships below that we use to get through the gates. So, everyone that is going with us to Atlantica has to switch ships, too.”

“Why do we need to take the gates anyway? Can’t someone just open a portal or something?” asked Kairi.

“Simple Princess, the magic that keeps the heartless contained is the same magic that keeps the worlds separated… these gates were built by the heartless and nobodies under the direction of Xehanort’s heartless and Xemnas. They used them to bypass the protections. The gates are made of Twilight, a mix of light and dark. This confounds the magic and allows them to move back and forth. The Gummi ships are designed to withstand the harshness of the Twilight gates and allows us to battle any enemies we encounter.” explained King Mickey as he joined the group of travelers at the cockpit. They all nodded, understanding completely.

“Sora, before you all leave, we have something new for your outfits. They are badges.” came Chip’s voice from a speaker. A compartment opened on the console and six silver badges were revealed. “They should change with your clothes once Donald enchants them!” They all took one with smiles.

After changing ships and strapping themselves down, the gang was ready for launch. The runway lights lit up, Chip and Dale saluted them from their monitors. The engines roared to life on the Gummi Ship and as soon as the doors opened, Sora floored the accelerator, everyone’s head snapping back as the ship lurched forward. It shot out of the port and into the gate at warp speed. Sora leisurely looked out the window at all the small blue and green islands that were floating almost everywhere. The waterfalls sparkled and the lakes were a deep blue. He had forgotten how pretty this gate was.

“This place is beauti—ahhhh!” Kairi started to echo his sentiments, but ended up screaming as an enemy Gummi flew in front of the window. Sora turned the ship and took out the enemy quickly. That’s how the ride continued with various gasps and cries as the ship turned and jolted. Sora was sweating bullets as he continued blasting hundreds of enemy ships out of the sky, but there seemed to be no end to them. Hundreds now surrounded them. Sora’s eyes darted from one place to another as he maneuvered the ship to keep away from enemy fire. There seemed to be no way out.

“This is bad…” moaned Riku. Then Sora saw what he had been looking for. A small opening in the ships had emerged.

“SORA! NO!” Donald commanded suddenly. Donald must have followed Sora’s intense gaze and caught on to his plan. Sora glared at Donald before turning his gaze back to the windshield.

“Trust me. This is going to be tricky,” Sora said. Then in a louder voice, “Hang on guys!” He pushed forward on the controls and the ship lurched as it went into a dive. A crazy corkscrew followed the dive. The corkscrew Sora was doing helped evade enemy fire as they got closer to the hole. Everybody held their breath as they got closer to the rapidly shrinking hole. Almost… almost… Sora was bearing down on the controls as hard as he could. The ship was going full throttle. There was only just enough room for the ship…and they barely slipped through. Everyone sighed in relief, but then screamed as more enemy ships appeared and began firing on their ship. Sora’s rapid shooting cleared the way and they were able to exit the gate.

As they traveled through the last of the twilight gate, Riku voiced his displeasure at the rather bumpy ride they had taken.

“I thought the gates were closed during the Nobody deal, why were the heartless and nobodies still there? Are the doors open again?” asked Riku, looking at the King. Mickey shifted uncomfortably for a moment.

“I was hoping this was not the case, but I figured having a few more Keyblade wielders along might make things easier if it were.” He finally muttered contritely. Sora felt his fear and suspicions resurface. What exactly did the King know and what was the mouse going to do with that information? Before Sora could voice his concerns to the King, Kairi cut him off.

“What do you mean, your Majesty?” Sora relaxed back into his chair. At least one of his questions would be answered.

“I had gathered up all of Ansem’s and his apprentices’ notes. I had been intent on taking them back to the castle and locking them away. However, before I made it back to the castle, I received a call from my master, Yen Sid. He gave me more research notes from Ansem’s Master on something called the Mindless.” explained the King. “They form from what is left of a strong person’s mind. They are said to look like phantoms…”

 

“Wait a minute! Did you say phantoms? I think we fought one…” blurted Goofy. Everyone turned to stare at the captain. Sora’s eyes widened.

“You are thinking of that phantom we fought in Neverland, right?” asked Sora. The canine nodded enthusiastically.

“Phantom?” parroted Mickey.

“Yeah, it looked like a black empty coat with a hood. And we beat it by attacking these exposed hearts with weapons or magic…” explained Sora with a shrug. His mind also supplied the image of the monster they fought in Agrabah’s desert.

“Perhaps we can check that out when we reach Neverland. But for now, we are in Atlantica and I really need to see King Triton.” said King Mickey. The rest nodded. Sora was not so easily distracted. He was very aware of the fact that Kairi’s and Riku’s questions were never actually answered. Sora narrowed his eyes.

“Hold on. This still doesn’t tell us why there are Heartless and Nobodies, or how you knew to suspect them!” prodded Sora. He saw Riku giving him a concerned glance. The monarch sighed heavily.

“When I reached Master Yen Sid’s tower, he and Merlin were fighting hordes of Heartless and Nobodies. Once we finally cleared the place out, Merlin told me that some of his contacts from around the Quadrant were reporting sightings of the creatures. No one knows where they came from.” answered Mickey. Sora was not completely satisfied, but at least he got some answers. They did nothing for his concerns about the King’s motives. It seemed Riku was feeling the same way as he continued to question Mickey.

"Why do you need to speak with King Triton of all people?" asked Riku suddenly, "I mean, from past experience, he is not all that fond of Keyblade bearers..." Everyone turned to look at the murine King. Sora nodded emphatically to Riku’s claim.

"Simple, really, Atlantica is one of the oldest worlds in this quadrant of the galaxy that we are in. And based on Jiminy's previous records, King Triton has had previous contact with other Keyblade bearers besides you and Sora." explained Mickey. A few tense moments passed, and then Chip’s voice startled them. The chipmunks had located a disembarkment point. During the final preparations, Donald gave the King, Riku, and Kairi an outfit upgrade. Now their clothes would change with the environment, if they needed to. He also touched up the outfits for himself, Sora and Goofy. Eventually, all of them stood around the exit hatch looking into the green light extending from it.

“I’ll go first!” said Sora, jumping right into the light.

* * *

Everyone else had filed in one after the other after Sora’s departure.  Kairi was the last to go. She leapt into the light and the rest of the world fell away. The next thing she knew, she was surrounded by cold water. She tried in vain to swim to the surface, but it felt as if her legs were bound together by her ankles. She looked down to see what was holding her back and screamed. Then she realized that water was entering her lungs and she clamped a hand over her mouth. After a moment, she found she still could breathe. Her legs were not there but in their place was a fin, a huge fuchsia fish fin. Her breasts were covered with two fuchsia-colored shells strapped to her like a bikini top. She was a mermaid… a sinking mermaid… She did not know how to swim like a mermaid. But just as she was beginning to panic, two strong arms snaked their way around her waist and stopped her descent. She looked behind her to see that Sora was the one holding her up.

“Are you okay? I know how hard it is to swim for the first time.” He said.  She giggled sheepishly, nodding. Sora let go as he instructed her on how to swim. “Pump your fin like you would push a swing back and forth.

She did as she was told and to her surprise she stayed afloat as long as she kept moving her arms. “Now, if you want to go up, you push your arms down just like you would do if you were human, but make sure you move your fin like I told you to. If you want to swim forward, pull yourself forward using your arms while moving your fin. Then going down is the opposite of how you go up. Got it?” Kairi nodded hesitantly, her head was spinning due to the quick and wordy swim lesson.

“Hey Sora!” They both turned to see Riku, King Mickey, Donald and Goofy all swimming towards them. Riku had no shirt and a shark’s fin, there was also a black tattoo on his right pectoral. She couldn’t make out the shape. It must have been the badge, it must have become that when Riku changed forms. The King had become a black sea lion, but you could still see his face and ears, which made the King look a little bit silly. Sora covered his mouth to stifle a laugh and Kairi could not stop herself from giggling.

Riku got to them first and said, “I laughed, too.” Once the gang reunited, they headed towards the Atlantica Palace. Sora seemed excited about seeing his Atlantian friends again. She could see the lights gleaming from the crystalline palace from far off. As they entered the palace, Kairi sensed a heavy tension in the air. The group had been greeted with a cold silence.

“This place is unusually silent… don’t you think so, Donald?” asked Sora, his voice barely a whisper. Donald nodded in agreement.

“Well, what is this place like when it is not unusually silent?” She asked as she swam alongside Sora.

“Usually there is music playing somewhere, people coming and going… it’s great, we were in a musical here once. It was a lot of fun…” Sora said as they entered the huge throne room. 

Their eyes fell on a very depressed merman, making them gasp. He wore a crown of coral and possessed white hair and a matching beard. Sora frowned in concern, swimming forward to talk to the troubled King, and Kairi and the others followed him. “King Triton, are you alright?” The old Atlantian looked up at Sora’s voice.

“My poor Ariel, what I would not give to see her smile again.” He sighed. Kairi felt her stomach tighten in dread. She shared a worried glance with Sora. The merman quickly swam forward. ‘

“What happened to her? Don’t tell me that Ursula’s back!” Sora inquired frantically. King Triton shook his head.

“It is her sister Morgana! The foul witch killed Prince Eric and left my poor Ariel devastated. I have not heard her sing, laugh, or speak to anyone since she came back to Atlantica. She just lies in bed all day and cries.” explained the King. The knot in Kairi’s stomach grew. However, some of her worry vanished when she caught sight of Sora’s face. He was already deep in thought.

 She was sure he was trying to devise a way to help his friend. Kairi thought back to her own experiences with loss. What had helped her? Then she had an idea. But she quailed at the thought of talking to the King. _Come on, you have survived plenty of adventures!_ She thought irritably. Kairi took a steadying breath and then spoke,

“Ummm… King Triton, sir… maybe it would help Ariel to go somewhere else for a little while?” King Triton sat up on his throne a little more.

“Oh, is that so?” he asked. Then Sora caught on to what Kairi was trying to suggest.

“Sure,” Sora chimed in, “Ariel’s always wanted to visit other worlds! Why doesn’t she come with us? I’m taking my old friends around to all of the worlds I visited on my adventures! She would have a lot of fun meeting all the friends I’ve made on other worlds. And more importantly, it would help take her mind off of losing Eric, at least for a bit…” King Triton sat back on his throne and pondered the idea. After a moment, he sighed.

“I have decided… that if it might help Ariel… I am willing to try it…” said King Triton haltingly. Sora smiled before high fiving Kairi. King Triton called for Sebastian and sent him to fetch Ariel. She and Sora continued to celebrate until Kairi noticed that Riku was just keeping to himself. The teen looked lost and troubled. Kairi wanted to ask what was wrong, but the throne room doors opened once more, distracting her. The little crab had returned with a young mermaid in tow. Kairi took her first look at Ariel and found an unpleasant feeling begin to gnaw at her insides. She had hair that was redder than Kairi’s own. A glistening green tail a torso covered by a lavender shell bra. She was gorgeous. Kairi found herself comparing her own body and for some reason she felt she was lacking something. Kairi was torn from her thoughts as Sora moved to flank the princess.

“Yes, Daddy?” Ariel questioned once she reached the foot of the throne. Kairi winced. Ariel sounded so miserable. The gnawing sensation was slowly smothered by sympathy. Kairi swam up next to Ariel and noted a few more details. Ariel looked like she might be a little older than Kairi herself. She also had dark bags under her eyes. Her countenance was slightly pale and her eyes were downcast. King Triton’s voice had all three teens looking up.

“We have visitors.” said the king. Ariel looked up for the first time and then spotted Sora on her left and instantly started to grin. She tackled him with a hug, saying,

“Oh Sora, I am so happy to see you!”

Sora laughed and said, “Hiya, Ariel!” Then he hugged her back. That gnawing sensation came back with a vengeance. Kairi was beginning to get an idea of what was eating at her. Then Sora let go of Ariel after a moment before turning her around and pointing to Kairi. “This is my best friend, Kairi.” Ariel’s eyes widened with wonder before she swam over to Kairi. She found herself blushing at Sora’s enthusiasm.

“Oh, you’re Kairi! Sora told me so much about you and… what was his name, again? The one he was still looking for last time. Ummm… oh yeah! Ri-Riku! Riku was his name!” said Ariel happily, seemingly pleased that she had remembered his name.

Kairi laughed just as Riku swam over saying: “Did I hear someone say my name?” He had swam up behind Ariel so when he spoke, she was startled and whirled around to face him, but she ended up with her nose in his chest. Ariel raised her hands and placed them on his chest to push herself away from the boy. Their eyes finally met and they seemed to be mesmerized.

Kairi giggled at the scene, Sora looking over at the sound. He wore a look of a confused amusement. She was just as lost as Sora was. They exchanged shrugs before observing the scene before them again. She had never seen Riku look like that at anyone. He was always distant and “superior” in his interactions with people. He was Mr. Cool himself, but at this moment he was practically openly gaping at Ariel. This was something that the old Riku would never, ever do. What was going on?

Then she started to smile; could it be that the ice cube known as Riku was being melted by love or at least seeing a pretty girl? She started to giggle. Sora turned to look at her with a curious look, but she quickly shook her head. She knew that if Sora found out about what she was thinking… he would never let poor Riku have a moment of peace, since Riku had always teased Sora about the relationship between Sora and her.

 To be quite honest, she was not really sure about the relationship between them. Kairi could tell that they were more than friends now, but she wasn’t quite sure that she knew what to call themselves now. Sora had not come out and directly said that he cared for her but it was obvious in his actions. She just sighed and decided that they would discuss the matter later.


	2. Imaginary

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hi! It's off to the races from here folks!

Mickey watched as King Triton cleared his throat to regain the teens’ attention. Both Ariel and Riku snapped out of the daze they were in before springing apart, Kairi and Sora snickering softly at the two. After another pointed cough from the monarch the two grew silent. Ariel returned her attention to her father’s throne, and some of her energy seemed to be restored. She floated respectfully before him and repeated her earlier question.

“Sora has asked that you accompany him on a trip…” answered the King, studying his daughter. Mickey could easily see that the news had brightened the fragile gleam in her eyes.

She immediately turned to the merman on her left and asked, “You want to take me to another world?”

Sora and Kairi both nodded eagerly.

“Say you will come with us, princess…” begged the redhead.

 “I don’t know… I mean there is Eric’s kingdom to consider. I have been away for a good long while already. Could they really survive with me being gone for much longer?” pondered the aquatic princess. The others remained silent as the princess deliberated on what to do. Meanwhile, King Mickey swam carefully over to King Triton.

“I need to speak with you privately, your majesty. It is of great importance.” the King whispered softly. The half Piscean ruler looked at the murine royal and nodded meaningfully towards the gaggle of young people talking. Mickey nodded in agreement. They would need a more private setting to have their discussion. Sebastian, however, gave them an out as he swam over from the group of whispering merpeople and approached the royals.

“Your Majesty, the children have decided to travel back to de land and discuss Ariel’s leaving with de people above. I can accompany them and report back when dey are done?” suggested the crustacean softly. King Triton ran his hand down his face and sighed loudly. But a moment later, nodded his assent.

“Very well, tell them that they may but they need to make it a quick trip. I need to speak with my daughter before she takes her leave.” answered the King. The small crustacean bowed low before the monarch and then returned to the group. After a moment, the group of young people turned and waved, before setting off for the land. Once the group and Sebastian left, the King moved the guards from the room. The guards saluted the King before pulling the heavy throne room doors closed. As the doors thundered shut, a heavy silence took over the room.

After taking a moment to gather his thoughts, Mickey finally spoke, “First, I want to offer my condolences on the loss of your son-in-law.” He said quietly. “Losing a loved one is hard.” Mickey winced, an old loss aching within his chest. He shook himself and refocused on King Triton. Triton nodded in acknowledgment. After the picesean royal thanked him for his thoughtful words, Mickey got to the heart of the matter he wished to discuss.

“You needed to speak with me?” said the King. Mickey nodded.

“Yes, King Triton, I do. Sora says that when he first arrived on your world, that you knew of the Keyblade. I want to know why?” asked the King. The murine monarch watched as a shadow passed over the King’s face. The King felt a shiver of fear crawl down his spine at the older man’s thunderous scowl. The tense standoff between the two stretched for several long moments.

“Before I answer, I would like to know why _you_ are interested.” King Triton growled lowly. King Mickey swallowed. This was the crux of the matter, if King Triton refused to answer, this entire trip would be for naught. Mickey would be stuck right back where he started. He took a deep breath and began his tale,

“After our fight with Organization XIII and Ansem’s death, I gathered all of their notes and put them away so that no one could cause as much damage they did through the use of Nobodies and Heartless. But one day, I received an unsigned package from the Radiant Garden. In it were more notes, but these were written by Ra Xip, brother of my master, Yen Sid. Ra Xip was master to Ansem. The notes contained information on the past worlds and rarer creatures only known as mindless. In his notes, he mentions multiple Keyblades and their wielders. Specifically, he says that they were very important to the security of their world. Since you are one of the oldest rulers left living in this quadrant, I came to ask you about what you know.”

“More than I want to admit…” King Triton sighed. The man looked very old and sad. Mickey felt bad for asking. “Ariel reminds me of her so much.” Now, he was confused. Who was King talking about?

“I’m afraid I don’t follow, your majesty.” Mickey admitted softly.

“Ariel’s mother, Athena, was our world’s Keyblade wielder. That was until she died when Ariel was two years old. Ursula had been summoning Heartless into our world. She wanted to harness their power for her own use. A great fight waged between her and Ursula. She was finally able to banish the heartless and defeat my half-sister. The battle between them was fierce and long... Athena succumbed to her battle wounds the next day.” The King took a deep, slow breath. “Her loss left a deep hole in all of us and the seal around our world began to weaken, and heartless and other creatures began pouring in and doing harm to my citizens. We broke away from the rest of the worlds in hopes that the flow of creatures would stop and, for a time, it did. Then the Heartless returned using a different route. By the time Sora came along, the world’s protection had failed and the only thing that kept the world’s heart safe was the fact that it was hidden.” said King Triton.

Mickey’s eyes widened. His thoughts began to race at a rapid pace. What Ra Xip had written was true! The worlds had all been connected all through space. But over time they had closed themselves off to protect against heartless and other monsters as their Keyblade wielders were lost. And with the disintegration of the worlds’ alliance the dark grew stronger and the light diminished. That’s why all it took to cause chaos was one person willing to give up everything around them for power. There were no Keyblade masters to maintain the heart and drive out the darkness within their own worlds. It all made perfect sense.

After all, in their party alone there were 4 Keyblade wielders: Sora, Riku, Kairi, and himself. Kairi was probably a wielder for her kingdom: Radiant Garden. Riku and Sora were from the same Island, so there could be more than one in a given area. He was from the Walterlands and been able to wield a Keyblade since he helped save the Princess, whom he later married. He now had a lot to think about. This talk had simultaneously given him hope and terrified him. It was clear that this cycle of violence would not end until the worlds were connected again properly, only then could they have a strong enough presence to keep the dark at bay. They had their work cut out for them, the King was sure of it. The hardest parts would be locating the wielders of the various worlds nearby and convincing them and their rulers that connecting was a necessary endeavor. After all, it would be best to start small. And he could start with the man in front of him.

“Thank you for the information, Your Majesty. I know that this must not have been easy for you, but I appreciate it. This confirms my suspicions about the notes. I have information of my own to share. There were monsters within the gate we crossed, the heartless and nobodies have returned. However…” Mickey faltered. He hated being the bearer of bad news. But for the past few years that had been his burden.

“However?” encouraged the older monarch. Mickey gathered his wits. Since the day he was accepted as a Musketeer, he had never backed down from any mission given to him. He was not going to back down now nor ever. Too much had been lost and there was too much still at stake to do so.

“It seems that another creature has reappeared. According to some rumors spreading among refugees passing through port towns like Radiant Garden and even Traverse Town, the mindless have returned.” said Mickey solemnly. The merman’s eyes widened and then narrowed.

“There are incompletes in the world again? More than one?! This is a disaster!” the sea king thundered. A deep sense of foreboding started to build in Mickey’s chest. What were incompletes? He was clearly lacking more information than he realized. He shot a questioning look at the older man.

“Incompletes, your majesty?” he queried.

“You are a young king… you would not be completely familiar with the way things were. Incompletes are the name of the remnants of a person after they are corrupted by darkness. The heartless are a type of incomplete. There are rumors of other incomplete types. There are even rarer whispers of hybrid Incompletes that could often seem truly like people but were often twisted in some way...” explained King Triton thoughtfully.

Mickey felt another icy sliver of dread slide down his back. Hybrids… other incompletes… every time he thought he had a handle on things something else came along and showed the king otherwise. The two men talked for several minutes more with Mickey asking more and more detailed questions. Unfortunately, King Triton had few answers for him but he suggested someone that might.

“You say there is an old historian on another world that may have more information?” Mickey asked. The older being nodded. 

“Yes, he and I crossed paths long ago. His King had sent him on a fact finding journey and he had traversed many worlds, sharing and receiving knowledge everywhere he went. My wife bumped into him one day in a boat that had gotten blown out to the deeper waters. She helped him find the land again. The two talked often about all manner of things. She had been fascinated by how the other worlds lived… I guess Ariel’s obsession with humanity was not a fluke but simple heredity.” said the King with a rueful chuckle. Mickey smirked in response.

“What was his name? Did you know where he was from?” asked Mickey. He was already planning on going back home and having Chip and Dale figure out where this new world might be. Mickey also wanted to see Minnie again, it had been too long since he had seen her.

“He often referred to himself as Doc. He mentioned once that he was from a kingdom in a deep wood. That’s most of what I remember. I’m sorry I cannot be of any more help.” answered the King as he leaned back on his throne. Mickey thanked him for the information. Both monarchs just rested in silence for a moment.

Finally, Mickey decided to put forth his thoughts on future. “King Triton, I’m sure you recognize the important role that the Keyblade and their bearers play in maintaining the peace and safety of our realms.” Mickey said softly. The older merman nodded with a heavy sigh.

“Of course I do, but you are asking me to risk the life of one of the few precious things I have left in this world,” Triton said with a groan. “But I also know that I will not be around to protect them forever.” He called for his guards and they entered the room solemnly. Triton sent one of the mermen after his oldest daughter. Suddenly, a feeling of dread washed over King Mickey. Something was very wrong.

* * *

The young merfolk swam along conversing softly. Riku, Kairi, and Ariel are discussing the world around them. Sora was content to listen. To be honest, he had been highly distracted. He had been watching Ariel. Her entrance into the throne room still haunted him. She had seemed like a shell of herself. Even now, though her voice was placid, it lacked the energy that usually floated around her. The man she had risked her life and fins for was gone. Sora could sort of imagine what that felt like. Probably, like he felt waking up in Transverse Town with no home and his friends gone. 

Eventually, Sora’s silence must have been noticed by Riku, his fried giving him a concerned glance as Kairi and Ariel continued on, unaware. He waves Riku on as he swims a little faster to catch up to the girls. Then suddenly a feeling of dread pierces his heart. It freezes him in place. He shakes the fear off and begins to scout the area. He had learned fairly early on to never ignore that feeling. Suddenly, the hairs on the back of his neck stood up. He spun around in time for his Keyblade to appear and block a strike by a black shark with a Heartless symbol on its back.

“GUYS! LOOK OUT!” he cried as he struggled to keep the creature at bay. With a grunt, he shoved the shark back and ducked out of the way as it attacked again. He drug Oathkeeper along the passing creature’s side. It thrashed about, roaring in pain. The currents it generated pushed Sora down and away, tumbling head over tail.

“SORA!” cried Riku. Sora managed to right himself in time to watch, dazed, as Riku charged at the shark. He raised his blade to strike at the shark, but was immediately blown back by the currents. Riku was new to swimming as a mer. He did not have Sora’s experience of swimming and fighting.

“SORA! RIKU!” cried Kairi in alarm. Sora turned to see Ariel and Kairi making a beeline for them. Ariel in the lead, sparks leaping from her hands. A cry of pain drew Sora’s attention back to the shark. His heart leapt into his throat. Riku’s blade wielding arm was trapped in the shark’s mouth, blood streaming from the wound. The creature was viciously shaking his head from side to side. No! He had just found him! He couldn’t lose him again! Sora raced forward with swift, but powerful strokes of his tail. Just as he was inches away from the struggling pair, heat zipped by him. Sora jerked to a stop on instinct.

“AAAAArrrrggggh!” Riku cried. Sora blood ran cold as Riku and the shark writhed in pain as lightning danced around their bodies. The lightning died away in seconds as did Riku’s screams. The shark had fallen unconscious and dropped Riku’s arm. Riku himself had gone slack and was starting to sink. Sora immediately raced forward and grabbed his friend around the middle. He immediately swam up as the shark’s body continued to sink. The symbol on Riku’s chest had begun to pulsate with white light. Sora frowned in concern.

“Oh, oh Sora I’m so sorry! I—” Ariel cried as she raced up to Riku’s other side and helped Sora carry the injured boy, the others were right on her fins. Donald cast Curaga on Riku. The mark stopped glowing. Riku moaned in pain a moment later, his eyes fluttering as he came around. The wound stopped bleeding, but the magic would not hold for long. Cure magic in general was good for halting the damage and restoring some energy but it was just a stop gap measure. It was better for healing Status effects like unconsciousness or elemental impairments. Potions actually healed wounds, they were just a lot slower. Sora had learned during his journey that combining the two was the most effective way to keep yourself alive. Either way, Riku needed medical attention fast.

“Riku!” Kairi cried, “Why did you do that?!” The redhead’s eyes flashed as she glared at Ariel.

“I am sorry! I was aiming for the shark! Things happened so quickly…” babbled Ariel, almost in tears. Sora was only half paying attention to the argument between the two young women. He had a feeling this fight was not over. He was unfortunately distracted by Sebastian.

“Flounder and I will go ba’ ta de King at once! He will send help!” the crab said as he dragged the young fish away. Sora turned back to the arguing girls. 

“Calm down, Kairi. I am sure that Ariel did not mean for Riku to get hurt. Things happen. We need to head back to the castle before—” Sora hissed urgently, his eyes darting about as he looked for enemies. Heartless never showed up on their own or alone for that matter. Another warning shiver went down his spine. His eyes were immediately drawn to the still falling shark. Its corpse was now just a shadow in the deep getting smaller and smaller. It clearly was not getting back up.

“Oh no! It can’t be! They… you’re dead! She… her magic…” gasped Ariel dismayed. His eyes darted back to Ariel and horror sank its teeth into his soul. Before their eyes, two moray eels weaved and bobbed around each other, hissing laughter. Both possessed one dead eye. Sora recognized them immediately.

“Flotsam and Jetsam! How?!” Sora cried. Suddenly, cruel laughter cut through the tense silence. Sora felt a chill run down his spine. In a shower of bubbles and smoke, Ursula herself appeared.

“Did you miss me?” she taunts as Flotsam and Jetsam wind their way around her. Sora swallows down the bile that crept up his throat. Ursula sounded the same but her body, was not. Her skin hung loosely from her bones. Her abdomen bore a hole. Her innards were hanging out and floating in front of her. Someone had reanimated her corpse.

“Not really!” hissed Donald furiously as he and Goofy rushed forward. Donald called down a fork of lightning with a shout. Ursula just laughed as the lightning bounced off. With a swipe of her hand, she summoned a current that blew Donald and Goofy away. The two were thrown into Kairi. She couldn’t escape their path in time. The three were sent spiraling and their weapons vanished as they were ripped from their hands.

Sora could only gape. He quickly handed Riku over to Ariel and charged forward. Ariel’s protests were drowned out by the sea witch’s order for her lackeys to attack. Sora narrowed his eyes at the two eels. They raced forward and tried to trap him, but Sora easily dodged both of their strikes with a tight corkscrew maneuver that almost left him dizzy. The eels continued to hound Sora and the teen barely managed to stay out of their clutches. A blast of Aero managed to put some distance between him and the eels. He attempted to use lightning again, but it just bounced off like before. What could he possibly do to bring them down? Someone had clearly brought them back from the dead. Possibly using the power of darkness… then maybe…

“Light!” Sora cried as he summoned the light within himself and forced it through his Keyblade. A Pearl of light grew at the tip of the blade and Sora swings the blade in a wide arc. The sphere flies forward and collides with the faltering eels and explodes. When the light fades, the only thing left of the eels is fading light dust. Sora is left gasping for air, that spell always left him feeling drained.

“Noooo! Blast and damn you SORRRAAA!” shrieks Ursula. Suddenly, Sora felt something strong and slimy wrap around his middle, pinning his arms to his sides. He struggled against the binding. Ursula was using her tentacles to bound him, he could feel the suction cups digging into his flesh. Another tentacle wrapped around his throat and squeezed. Panic set in as Sora’s gills and windpipe were sealed shut. _Damn it! I should have maneuvered more carefully! She was behind me and I forgot all about her!_ He hissed mentally as he struggled to free himself. His lungs began to burn as they spasmed uselessly. Sora began to flail and claw at the water desperately. His vision had started going blurry. His limbs were growing heavy. _No! No! Kairi… Riku… can’t let them… die…_ Sora reaches deep into his dwindling energy reserves and continues the struggle to free himself. Despite his efforts, the appendage doesn’t move. His movements began to slow and his vision begins to fade. Sora feels light-headed. Something catches his eye. Red. The color red. It seems to be headed towards him. Suddenly, Sora’s consciousness is swallowed by darkness. The last thing he hears is Ursula’s maniacal laughter. However, his last thought is about the color he saw.

_Kairi..?_

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thanks for reading! I would love any comments! You can find me on Tumblr @[EbonyPhD](https://www.tumblr.com/blog/ebonyphd). I post direct links and info on my writing on my writer blog @[Wolfkeeper989](https://www.tumblr.com/blog/wolfkeeper989)


	3. Haunted

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hello again! Well, now that we are off to the races, I am not about to let you all off! Thanks again to my beta Morning Glory over at Discord! Please let me know what you think! Leave a comment!

 Ariel could only stare in dismay. Mentally she was screaming, but her body refused to move. Sora’s movements stilled. Ursula cackled in triumph. No… this couldn’t be happening, not again! Yet, Sora’s body remained limp in Ursula’s grip. For a moment, she saw brown skin in place of white, black locks instead of brown. She was losing him all over again. She couldn’t stand by and let someone die for her again!

She checked on Riku briefly when he chokes out, “No…”

When she noticed that he’s mostly awake, Ariel took off towards Ursula with nothing more than vengeance on her mind, but she pulled up short when Sora’s body began to glow, a white light growing along his body with every pulse. His entire body suddenly became engulfed in it, blinding Ariel. She could hear Ursula cry out in pain. When the glare died away, Sora was nowhere to be seen. The undead witch howled in fury as her limbs clutched at nothing but air. Where had he gone?

Her bewilderment was cut short when Kairi barreled past her, screaming in anguished fury. Riku’s voice joined hers as he weakly called for her to wait. The young redhead didn’t slow, she aimed a clumsy strike at the sea witch, but Ursula easily dodged it and retaliated by nailing the girl in the stomach with a tentacle. Kairi is batted away. At some point, Goofy and Donald had returned to the fray. Suddenly, there was a flurry of bubbles, limbs, and magic whipping before and around her. The trio of warriors kept going, but they continued to fail.

“You all are far too weak to stop me! No human boats to save you this time!” Ursula taunted.

A dark inky substance slowly permeated the water, obscuring what little visibility Ariel had. Panic tightened its hold on her throat and heart. She whirled about in the inky darkness, desperate for a way out. Suddenly, the current around her started to shift. She automatically started pushing against it lest she was blown away, the roar of the water rushing past her filling her head, drowning out her thoughts. She was left struggling in the dark, senseless.

The world returned to her sight and the roar of the water died down. Ariel turned about and saw Riku with his blade raised, the last ripples of wind dying around him in a rush of foamy bubbles. He had blown the ink away with a spell, it had cost him, though. The effort ended the Cure spell that had held his wounds closed. There was an orange cloud of blood around his arm once more. Despite this, his eyes were narrowed in a steely glare. The green of them standing out against his gray skin.

“Let them go, witch.” He snarled weakly. Ariel turned back to see that Ursula had the rest of the gang wrapped in her tentacles. Ariel’s heart squeezed as if trying to break out of her chest. Ursula just cackled and squeezed the three harder, gaining groans and gasps of pain.

“Sure, I’ll let them go… as soon as I crush them!” she shrieked in defiance.

“Ah ah, my dear Ursula. Don’t be so hasty, now.” purred a voice. Ariel felt flames of hatred engulf her chest. Morgana. The one who had taken Eric from her. Of course, this was her doing. The mermaid felt her magic rolling under her skin. The sea witch finally appeared beside her undead sister. The thinner of the two sisters was clutching a blue stone in her hands. Was that how she was controlling Ursula? “After all, I need some life force to activate my weapon.” She continued. _Weapon?_ thought Ariel.

The stone began emitting a bright blue glow. The light then slowly crept over her trapped friends. Kairi and the others immediately started screaming. The stone continued to grow brighter and brighter. The suffocating clawing sensation in her chest grew right alongside it until Ariel finally darted forward, no longer frozen. No more were going to die for her, she would rather die first.

 “Morgana!” Ariel screamed. The cry surprised everyone including herself. She had no idea what she was going to do when or if she got to the witch, the only thing she knew was that she needed to save her friends.

Ariel pushed herself as fast as she could with her hands outstretched. Morgana raised her hand and it began to glow a sickly green. The mermaid would not have time to stop, but a bright gray block of light shimmered into existence before her and whatever spell Morgana had cast splattered against it in a shower of sparks. Ariel wasted no time and swam below the shield and headed towards Morgana using the glare of the two colliding spells as cover.

She darted behind Morgana from below and knocked the woman sprawling with a powerful flick of her tail meeting the cephalopod’s back. Ariel darted after the flailing witch and latched onto her wrist, trying to reach for the stone, but her hand was slapped away by a tentacle. The two women continued to tussle. Ariel continued reaching for the stone while trying to avoid the witch’s flying tentacles and errant spells. Ariel was not sure how much longer she could keep up the fight without eventually taking a hit.      

Morgana’s glowing green nails finally found purchase and dug into the mermaid’s side. Ariel shrieked in agony as she grabbed the older woman’s wrist. She tried to pull the hand out but only succeeded in making the wound worse. Morgana twisted her fingers inside the wound, wrenching an even higher wail from the princess. Fire seemed to rush under her skin and worm its way through her veins. She fought through the haze of pain. She couldn’t stop. If she failed here… more of her friends would die… her kingdom, her family, even the humans above would be in danger. 

Despite the pain, Ariel pulled at the magic within her and unleashed it on the sea witch. But she was surprised when light, not lightning, blazed from her fingertips. A grim satisfaction curled in Ariel’s belly at the witch’s screech of pain. The feeling was immediately quelled by the sharp sting of pain in her eyes as the light grew to blinding levels. She cried out and let go, barely seeing the witch recoiling in pain through the glare.

The light died down as quickly as it came. Ariel wrapped her arms around her wound as she fought to catch her breath. She eyed the still writhing witch warily. She was glad to see that the woman had finally dropped the stone and that it was steadily sinking into the depths. Then she noticed that there was an unusual weight in her dominant hand. Surprise stole through her. It was a weapon of some sort, gold and if she didn’t know any better, she would say it was a scepter with an intricately decorated guard and handle. Except, instead of jewels adorning the top, the soft pink jewels were clustered on the side. It almost looked like a small… blade. A Keyblade. Ariel stared at it for a moment, speechless. Where had it come from? Why did she have it? 

“You troublesome brat!” Ursula crowed, startling the princess from her thoughts. Ariel jerked around with a hiss. She had moved too quickly and aggravated her wound. She lifted her arms to see blood billowing around her arm and side. The wound was bleeding freely now that there was nothing in it. She looked up and saw Ursula batting away balls of dark energy. They were quickly followed by a crescent beam of white light that smashed into the undead witch, making her scream. Ariel could see that the last spell really hurt the witch. Ursula was now clawing at her chest and face. Ariel rushed forward, wincing at the pain from her wound. She held the blade forward and prepared to deal another blow to the witch, and raced past Ursula, landing a clumsy strike to her side. The witched howled and turned to face Ariel.

There was now a long gash across her face. It ran from the top right of her face down to the left bottom of her chest in a diagonal curve. The wound was leaking a brownish fluid that sluggishly trailed down her face. Ariel swallowed back bile, but only then did she notice that something was missing. Kairi, Donald, and Goofy were gone. Had they too vanished like Sora? A blanket of despair had settled on her shoulders. She was too late. Ursula gave a wordless snarl of rage and lunged forward to attack Ariel.

She immediately held the Keyblade in front of her with shaking hands. Her lungs were burning and her side was throbbing. She also knew that Morgana was not completely beaten and she could re-enter the fight at any moment. The mermaid wasn’t sure she could take the older witch on but she was willing to try. She was bracing herself for impact when another light beam slammed into Ursula’s left side. This one was much smaller and weaker than the first one Ariel saw, yet it still left its mark. More of the brown liquid was seeping into the water from the gash.  

“Hey! Did you forget about me?” croaked Riku as he swam over to Ariel’s side and stared down the floundering witch. The young merman looked spent, his skin had taken on an ashen pallor. His chest shuddered violently as he gasped for air. Blood still leaked weakly from his right arm and various bruises had begun to bloom on his skin, no doubt from when she had electrocuted him with her spell. He was half curled in on himself, barely staying afloat. A weak white light was pulsing around his body. He was probably disappearing like Sora, yet he was still there by her side. A sense of awe overcame Ariel. He was still up and fighting despite everything. Even Sora had been fighting until the end. A new wave of energy flowed into Ariel and she gripped her weapon tightly. If they could do it, so could she.

“Riku, what can we do? Can you do that light spell again if I distract her?” she asked softly. He looked at her and shook his head. What? He was practically glowing! “What do you mean? The light…”

“Not mine. I don’t know what this is. It’s not coming from me, though. It’s not magic. Light magic requires a bit of a person to ignite,” He explained in a whisper. “I can probably show you how to perform the spell but it’ll use up what little I have left, and we have to be quick.” He released his blade and it disappeared in a flash. He came closer and laid his hand on top of the one holding her Keyblade.  A warm pulsing light enveloped their joined hands. “Focus.” Ariel closed her eyes. “Now, can you feel my light?” Ariel felt the warmth around her hand. She nodded. “Now reach inside yourself and find yours. Sometimes it helps me to think about my friends.”

Ariel thought about his suggestion. The first image to pop into her head was of Sebastian and Flounder. She found herself wondering if they made it back to the castle. She remembered the many adventures she had with them. Sebastian teaching her all of her mother’s favorite songs, how he and Flounder helped her restore music to the palace. She recalled dancing and singing with her friend Gabriella. Singing and playing with her sisters. Talking with her father, meeting Sora, Donald, and Goofy, helping them save Atlantica, and then meeting Eric. She remembered all the plans they were going to make. Something caught within her chest and a warm feeling grew within. It spread through her entire body, warming her. She opened her eyes to see that she was glowing with light again.

“I-I did it.” She whispered reverently. Riku squeezed her hand and she looked to him. He looked almost proud.

“Now, the blade is an extension of you. You can channel magic through it. Imagine that the blade is hollow and that you are just filling it with light…” Ariel did as she was told. “I am going to help you direct it. Whenever you are ready, swing and let go. But you might wanna make it fast.” Ariel refocused on the fight and saw Ursula had regained her bearings and was heading for them again. Riku moved his hand from hers and placed it on her shoulder. His light still felt connected to hers. The two energies buzzed beneath her skin and vibrated within the blade. Ariel acted.

She brought her arm up and swung before her and Riku in a wide arc. A large wave of light poured from the blade in a burning trail. The large wave flew through the water and passed straight through Ursula’s neck. The witch pulled up sharp, stunned, a line of brown opening up in the folds before running down her throat. The witch gurgled wetly before falling backward her head slipped from her shoulders, with his body beginning to disintegrate, peeling away in   black inky pieces that fluttered down into the depths like confetti.

“Ursula! _NO!_!” screeched Morgana. The two blade wielders turned to see Morgana racing towards them with the stone once again in hand. Ariel swung her blade again and another beam of light raced through the water. Morgana easily dodged it. She was far more flexible than her sister. “I’ll just destroy all of you at once! There should be enough energy in here for at least the two of _you_!” Green lightning danced along Morgana’s arms and hands, flowing into the glowing stone. It began pulsing violently. Morgana screamed. Ariel looked on in horror as ice crept along Morgana’s limbs and covered the witch completely with ice.

“What just--- arrgghh!” started Riku. The question was cut off as the young man cried out in pain. Ariel turned back to him. He was clutching at his arm. The white glow that had surrounded him was pulsing stridently. She went to reach for him when a sharp cracking sound rented the eerie silence that had taken over the space. She turned around in time to see the stone burst into shards as more ice grew in the water. It seemed to race in all directions as it expanded. Morgana’s body was engulfed by the ice in seconds. Ariel began to panic, it wasn’t stopping. Spinning around, she raced to Riku and began to drag the injured mer along. The strain from the fight and Riku’s additional weight was slowing her down considerably. However, Riku quickly caught on and began pushing his way forward as best he could. The hissing of the chasing ice grew louder and louder and Ariel’s body grew weaker and weaker. She lacked the stamina she used to have. Her heart dropped to her stomach when a quick glance behind them revealed that the ice was lapping at the edges of the teens’ fins. They weren’t going to outrun this, there was no way. Still, she kept a grip on Riku and continued to push forward.

A flash of light blinded Ariel. The mermaid felt the world fall away…

* * *

Donald could only recall a blue light and pain as he regained consciousness. Eventually, the light that danced behind his eyelids faded. Then the pain fell into a dull ache. His senses slowly returned one by one. He felt the mask on his beak first. Then periodically he could hear a hissing sound. He returned to full awareness all at once. The mallard forced his eyes open. The world slowly came back into focus. The first thing he noticed was that he was lying down, the surface he was on form fitting and soft. In front of him was a curved window. He could see a white ceiling beyond it.

As he struggled to recall how he got in this situation, he slowly reached up and removed the mask from his face. The wizard drew a shaky breath. His body felt sore and weak but nothing seemed too badly damaged. _Was I in a fight? The last thing I remember is…? Atlantica?_ Donald thought sluggishly. His thoughts moving like toffee, slowly and sticking in places. The duck suddenly went rigid and his heart rate shot up. Atlantica! They had been attacked in Atlantica! He began beating on the glass, trying to free himself. His mind throwing image after image at him. Riku being attacked by a shark. Sora being attacked by Ursula. Being trapped in Ursula’s clutches. The pain of being squeezed… 

“Let me out!” he screamed as he continued to pound on the glass. A sudden blast of static nearly stopped his heart.

“Donald? Are you awake?” came a squeaky voice. Donald sagged in relief as he recognized Chip’s voice.

“Yes! Please let me out.” He answered with a sigh. There was a heavy thunk as a latch was released and the dome over him slid open. Donald slowly sat up and looked about. He was in the med bay. They did not use it often but it was there when they needed it. He was resting in one of the eighteen Recovery Pods that was part of the hangar, he must have been in bad shape if he had ended up in one of them. But… he wondered what had happened to the others. Were they here? How were they saved? He slowly climbed off the pod.

“If you concentrate you can change your clothes back. The pods automatically trigger a change to medical apparel for ease of treatment.” Said Chip over the loudspeaker. Donald took a look at himself. He was currently only adorned by a hospital gown. After a moment of concentration, his normal attire appeared in a shower of sparkles.

“Ahh… tha’s betta.” He mumbled. Another cursory glance around the room revealed that he was not the only occupant. Several of the pods were glowing. They were in use then. Curiously, Donald wandered over to the closest one and peeked inside. Kairi. She was deeply asleep. There were a few discolored bruises dotting her limbs but she seemed whole. Checking the other pods, he found a rough looking Riku, and to his surprise two mermaids floating in the water. He recognized Ariel, but the other one was new. She had brown hair piled on her head with a crown made of coral on it. Her shell bra was a deep red and her tail a sunset orange. Who was this? 

“Hey Donald, if you are feeling up to it, some of the others are waiting for you in the cockpit.” came Chip’s voice. Donald said that he would make his way there. After several minutes and hallways, he stood before the doors to the cockpit of the hangar ship trying to catch his breath. They slid open with a soft whoosh. Donald’s heart jolted in delight when his eyes fell on his King and friends standing by one of the bay windows. He immediately made his way over and bowed before his majesty.

“None of that now, Donald. I am glad to see up and about, my friend.” said the King as he gently pulled him from his bow. Goofy and Sora greeted him sincerely, though they seemed rather subdued. “I was wanting to wait until everyone was present to discuss what happened, but things have changed too much for us to hesitate any longer. You three are the most experienced adventurers next to myself with the exception of Riku. He is in bad shape so I don’t expect him to be up and about anytime soon. After all, it took the three of you 2 days to regain consciousness.” _Two days?!_  Thought Donald, stunned.

“Yeah, we all woke up within hours of each other.” agreed Sora. “We have no clue when the others will wake up. _If_ they wake up.” He added softly. The young man looked back out the window and sighed heavily. Donald walked over to see what everyone else found so interesting. Hanging out in the ether of space was a bright blue ball of something. Donald frowned. What was that?

“It’s Atlantica. And it’s covered in ice.” Said Mickey solemnly. Donald jumped. He hadn’t realized that his thoughts had been spoken out loud. “And I want to know why.” Sora, Donald, and Goofy all looked at each other.

“Well, I am not entirely sure. I was taken out first.” Sora ground out in frustration as he pounded a fist on the window. Goofy placed a hand on the boy’s shoulder. Sora just shrugged off the canine’s attempt at comfort. The captain and the wizard exchanged a worried glance.

“That’s okay, Sora. Just tell me what you remember.” coaxed the King softly. The teen glared out the window for a moment. Then his face collapsed into a somber, almost reflective look.

“We were heading to the shore, and got attacked by a shark Heartless. It came out of nowhere. I got a few hits in but it managed to grab Riku and injured him. Ariel tried to help and ended up blasting both of them with lightning. Around the same time, the reanimated corpses of Flotsam, Jetsam, and Ursula attacked us. I managed to beat the eels, but the spell left me open. Ursula jumped me, I lost consciousness and woke up here.” Sora explained. His voice heavy with shame.

“Don’t beat yourself up, Sora. No one came here expectin’ a fight. We were ambushed, there was little chance that we could have prevented this. This was probably part ‘o ‘er plan in tha first place.” explained Goofy. Donald almost wanted to laugh at the perplexed look on Sora’s face. It was easy to forget that Goofy was captain of the Royal Guard. The canine’s affable and sometimes absent minded nature often hid the true genius and cunning that he possessed. In times of courage and strife, those traits always shined.

“Goofy’s right,” Mickey said, “we probably stumbled into the middle of a plan in the making. After all, Prince Eric died not too long ago. And there are those reanimated corpses to consider. She was probably planning to use them to attack Ariel and the others. But that still doesn’t explain the ice.” The ruler trailed off, pensive. Donald thought back to his fight with Ursula. He suddenly remembered something.

“Th’ corpses. Th’ were immune to electricity. Th’ shark Heartless was still pretty susceptible to it. Ariel knocked it out with a single strike.” Said Donald. Mickey hummed thoughtfully.

“Then that must mean---” Sora started. Goofy jumped in excitedly,

“She ‘ad made them specifically to ‘unt down Ariel and King Triton!” Donald gasped. The reasoning made sense. The only magic Donald had seen any Atlanteans use was either water-based or electricity based. Water conducted electricity with ease.

“Given that most magic was water or electricity based, she made them immune to the most powerful weapons in her enemies’ arsenal.” Donald elaborated.

“I see. You three would know more about them than I would. But I can’t find any flaws in your theory. But that _still_ doesn’t explain the ice.” Said the king. The ice… Wait…

“Hey Goofy, do you remember a weird blue light?” the duck inquired. Goofy frowned and hummed thoughtfully.

“Now tha’ ya mention it, yeah. It hurt a lot.” He said as he rubbed at the back of his head as if remembering the pain. What had been that light?

“Looks like that’s all anyone knows.” said Sora, running a hand over his face. “Maybe we can get more out of Kai, Riku, and Ariel when they wake up.” The others nodded at the assessment. But hearing Ariel’s name reminded Donald of the second mermaid aboard the ship.

“Hey, maybe the other mermaid knows something, too.” He suggested. Mickey immediately shook his head.

“No, Princess Attina knows even less than you three do.” He said. Donald gave his King a puzzled look. “She was with King Triton and me in the throne room. We vanished just as ice started overtaking the room. Unfortunately, King Triton was left behind.” That reminded Donald of something.

“How exactly did we end up here, your Majesty?” asked Donald. Chip once again intervened in the conversation.

“Your badges brought you here. They are actually trackers. They were meant to track your movements in case you all were separated. We could use them to guide you back together. It also contained a transport function. It brings you back to the closest gummi ship or the hangar. When a party member is injured severely they are automatically brought to one of the Recovery Pods on the med bay.” The rodent explained. The wizard was impressed. Those little gadgets had saved their lives. The wizard hadn’t paid much attention to the thing when they had been given out. He stole a glance at the silver badge hanging from a red ribbon and gasped.

It was in the shape of the King’s coat of arms. The shape was a stylized mouse head. In the left ear there was a stack of books with a sprig of leaves perched on top of it. On the right one there was a bunny with a pair of curved swords surrounding it. In the center circle there was a fleur-de-lis with a dragon in front of it. Donald was intimately familiar with the crest. It represented the royal family’s motto: _Gain knowledge to grow, devote yourself to peace and defend the light always_. The wizard was overcome. Only members of the royal family wore the royal crest, members of the staff wore the simply stylized mouse head.

“Your Majesty… these badges… they… they’re too much. I am not…” Worthy, Donald wanted to say. He had been a petty and jealous friend of the King often as they grew up. He was not completely unaware of his flaws.  After all, he was almost tempted to go back in time and muddle with the past. 

“Don’t. When they brought the idea to me, I offered the crest for the physical badge because after all, they were going to be protecting those I considered family.” Said the King sincerely. Donald and Goofy both sank to one knee at the same time with their heads bowed low.

“Am I… missing something?” asked Sora slowly. Oh, right. He wouldn’t understand the significance of the crest.

“Don’t worry about it, Sora. They are just being silly.” Said the king uncomfortably. Donald sighed. Typical Mickey. Always downplaying his accomplishments. Donald returned to his feet at the King’s insistence. Eventually, the conversation returned to the original subject.

“If it activates when we are injured why was the King and Ariel’s sister brought here?” asked Sora.

“There is a voluntary transport function, too. If you press and hold the badge it will transport the wearer to the nearest ship or the hangar. Also, we have an emergency recall button on the ship and in this hangar as well. We activated it when we realized that something was wrong. The King had a hold of Princess Attina when he was transported. Riku must have been near Ariel when he was transported, too.” Explained Dale.

“But we definitely wished we had tied the systems together better. We apologize for that. If we had, we may have known something was wrong and recalled you all sooner.” continued Chip contritely.

“Don't worry, Chip. If it's anyone's fault it's mine. I rushed you. I knew there could be problems and did not plan for them properly. I’m sorry.” said the king.

“No offense, but I don't think that our focus should be on who is to blame as much as what are we going to do about it,” said Sora. Donald looked over as the teen leaned against the window with a dull thump. He recognized the mulish look on the brunette's face. Sora was itching to do something. The teen hated feeling helpless. However, the wizard knew that it would be a while before they would be able to do what he suggested.

“I agree. But we need more information first. We need to wait for the others before leaving the area.” said Mickey. “The last thing we need is to cause an interplanetary incident. We know the planet is covered in ice but not whether anyone survived the icing or how it happened. I don't want to take royalty from their planet without good reason.” Sora sighed.

“I guess that’s true but I can't stand around doing nothing, either.” he moaned in frustration. A heavy silence settled on the group. After a moment, Goofy moved closer to the King and inquired about his talk with King Triton.

“I received confirmation that the intel from Ra Xip is good but I just ended up with more questions than answers!” answered the mouse. “The worlds used to be connected. Each world had its own Keyblade wielder. The worlds worked together to keep the dark at bay with the help of their wielders  and, when the wielders were lost, the worlds isolated themselves to keep the darkness from spreading, but that just left them all vulnerable when things went wrong. Kind of like now. King Triton mentioned something about Incompletes and that there may be someone with more information in a place possibly located in or called Deep Woods.”

“Who is this person?” asked Goofy.

“The King said he called himself Doc. He traveled to different worlds, learning about them,” explained Mickey. “I was planning on returning home and searching the archives and library for any mention of this “Deep Wood” or wanderer named Doc. I was hoping to meet him and get some clearer answers. But now…” he shrugged. The conversation was once again derailed as a loud gurgle shattered the quiet. Donald sighed, looking at Goofy. The captain gave a sheepish chuckle as he rubbed his stomach.

“Actually, maybe we should take a break and eat something. I seemed to recall that the recovery pods tend to leave people hungry. Besides, you all probably need more rest to finish healing anyway,” said the King. Donald nodded in agreement.

“I’m not hungry,” said Sora distractedly as he pushed himself off the window. The trio watched him walk out of the room without looking back or bidding them goodbye. Goofy sighed.

“Sora is takin’ this ‘ard,” the canine moaned.

“Yeah, he is. I don’t think I have seen him like this before,” admitted Donald. Even at his lowest point Sora never looked that desolate. The King shook his head.

“What a mess.” He groaned. The King headed out of the cockpit and Donald fell into step with him with Goofy by his side as always. They eventually made it to the mess hall and managed to reheat some portable food that they all shared quietly. Once they finished and cleaned up, Donald and Goofy found themselves with little to do.

King Mickey was deep in a meeting with Chip and Dale about the ship they took to Atlantica and fixing the badges. Goofy was eventually called into the same meeting, leaving Donald to fend for himself. After wandering the ship for a bit, Donald began to wonder where Sora had gotten off to. After a moment of thought, he realized there was only one place he would have gone. The drake made his way back to the medical bay. The door slowly slid open once he reached it.

Sora was sitting next to one of the pods in a rolling chair with his hands slumped in his lap. He must have found it somewhere. The brunette was staring at the wall in front of him, still as a statue. Donald padded over slowly. The chair was situated between two pods. On his left, Kairi was still asleep and on his right Riku was the same. Sora had not stirred since Donald entered the room. He would have sworn the teen was asleep if it wasn’t for the tear stains on his face. A tear slowly made its way down Sora’s face as Donald came to stand next to him. He shifted on his feet, uncomfortable.

“Uhhh…” Donald started and then trailed off. What could he say at this moment? He wasn’t happy-go-lucky like Goofy could be. He wasn’t the polished speaker that his majesty was. If anything Donald was crass and unintelligible on his best days. Instead, Donald tentatively placed his hand on one of Sora’s and clasped it gently. Sora stiffened, but Donald squeezed a little tighter, trying to convey that he was here for the boy without words.

His throat went dry and his heart squeezed in his chest as more tears slowly cascaded down Sora’s face. Donald swallowed thickly. He slowly took the boy’s hand in both of his own and continued to hold it. Sora’s shoulders quaked minutely for a moment before dropping completely. His head followed as it was buried in his unoccupied hand. Soft sobs slowly drifted through the room.

It was clear to the wizard that his young charge and friend was suffering immensely. And Donald was pretty certain it wasn’t just Atlantica’s fate that was eating at the boy. Sora had not been acting like himself since this whole thing began. At first, Donald had put it down to being separated from Sora for so long. It had been about 2 years since the events involving Organization XIII. So, Sora had probably changed within that span of time, Donald knew that he had.

He had returned to Radiant Garden and spent time learning more magic from Merlin, while the King had spent his time tying up any loose ends from the group’s last mission. Goofy had spent time with Leon and his crew as they worked to get a proper peacekeeping unit going in the country. Merlin had him spend some time working on his impulsivity and temper before agreeing to teach him any new magic. It had a profound effect on Donald’s own disposition, although it was still a huge work in progress.

But, regardless of the wizard’s personal changes, Sora just looked run down. His smiles that used to be so genuine even when he was stressed, seemed to be nothing but forced. Even that cheesy first grin had been meant to get a laugh. His current ones never reached his eyes anymore. They were hollow, lacking the usual warm energy that Donald had come to associate with Sora. The boy’s blue eyes had lost their spark. They seemed almost soulless now, except when they seemed to overflow with sadness. He acted world weary and skeptical.

What had happened to the boy over the years? Donald had figured that he should have been happy. He had gotten his friends and home back, the very things the boy had wanted.

“I can’t…” came a rough whisper. Donald jerked his head up to look at Sora. His face was still hidden. “I can’t lose them, too. They are all I have left. So, I- I can’t…” The words dissolve into more rasping sobs. Donald just sighed and continued to hold the boy’s hand as he cried…

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thanks for reading! I would love any comments! You can find me on Tumblr @[EbonyPhD](https://www.tumblr.com/blog/ebonyphd). I post direct links and info on my writing on my writer blog @[Wolfkeeper989](https://www.tumblr.com/blog/wolfkeeper989)


	4. Haunted, Pt 2

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hi again! I am back with chapter 4. Things are starting to move again... but time is the enemy. Also, thanks to [dexterously](https://archiveofourown.org/users/dexterously/pseuds/dexterously) and [Diana Zephyr](https://archiveofourown.org/users/Diana_Zephyr/pseuds/Diana_Zephyr) for being awesome betas!

Goofy groaned as he opened his eyes. His body felt like lead. Despite the healing, he still felt exhausted two days later. He sat up slowly and yawned. The barracks were simple. It housed a few sets of bunk beds and some desks. He and Donald were sharing one. Across from them, Sora was resting on the bottom rack of another. The boy was curled up on his side with his back to them. The canine felt his worry slowly replace the dull aching of his limbs in his mind. Donald had confided in Goofy that Sora had been really broken up about everything. The duck had found him alone and crying in the med bay a few days ago. Since then the teen had just been drifting silently through the hangar as if he were just a ghost haunting the place.  Both he and Donald had mentioned their concerns to the king. The only advice that the mouse could give them was to be there for the boy. He hoped that once his friends regained consciousness that Sora would start to rally.

“Sora! Sora! You need to get to the medical bay! Hurry!” cried Chip through the intercom suddenly. Goofy jumped in his bed. Sora shot straight to his feet with his Key materializing in his hand instantly. Donald screeched in alarmed fury above him. Goofy and Sora met eyes and Sora shrugged sheepishly as he let the Key fade from existence again. His eyes widened suddenly. The boy quickly shot from the room. Goofy got up and followed. He could hear Donald scrambling to follow them.

Goofy’s heart instantly jumped when he entered the med bay. Sora was bent over and hugging a now conscious Kairi. The redhead was resting her head on Sora’s shoulder. The two were whispering softly to one another. He was glad to see that the girl was ok. Donald entered the room and called out excitedly,

“Kairi!” The two kids looked up at the door. Kairi gave a meek wave of her hand. Goofy made his way over. Sora and Kairi released the hug. 

“Where are we?” the girl asked quietly. Sora sat beside her and put his arm around her shoulders.

“Back in the ship hangar. This is the med bay. You have been out for a while.” He explained. Kairi’s eyes widened.

“Yeah, we’ve been worried about cha!” added Goofy. Sora gave a strained smile, nodding at the girl eagerly. The girl looked about.

“Where is everybody else? What happened to Ursula? Riku?!” she suddenly asked, growing more panicked by the moment. Sora hugged her close as he rubbed her back reassuringly.

“Riku is here in the med bay but he hasn’t woken up yet. Neither has Ariel.” answered Sora. The red head looked around again. Sora sighed and stood. He offered his hand to Kairi and pulled the girl to her feet. The two teens shuffled over to the other Pod and looked in it. Goofy glanced up at the patient chart glowing above it. Riku’s vitals had been all over the place in the last few days. According to Chip, Riku had several internal injuries that needed healing, not just the wound in his arm. He was also suffering from a severe case of magical drain. The chipmunk said it may be several more days before his vitals stabilized and several more still before he regained consciousness.

All the occupants of the room turned, when the doors opened again. The King and Chip entered. Chip began scrambling about checking the other sleeping patients as Mickey made his way over to the group.

“It’s good to see you awake, Princess.” Said the mouse sincerely.

“Thanks.” She croaked. “You don’t have to call… me princess.” Mickey shook his head.

“That is your title. It would be considered rude for me not to address you as such. But for now, I want to know how you are feeling.”

“Tired, sore… confused, worried,” she sighed. Mickey nodded.

“I bet. I hate to bother you but time is not on our side I am afraid. Do you remember anything about what happened in Atlantica?” asked the king. Kairi slowly worked through what she could remember. Unfortunately, it was no more than Goofy and Donald remembered.

“Then it looks like we are still stuck for now. At least, until Ariel and Riku wake.” said the monarch. Sora guided Kairi back to the pod and she sank into it gratefully. Donald decided to head to the mess hall and begin preparing something for all of them to eat. The two teens began to discuss dressing for Kairi. After Mickey explained it, they left the girl to it as the men made their way to where Chip was studying the chart above Attina’s pod from his perch on the machine itself. 

“I can’t say anything with certainty on the Princesses. I am not familiar enough with aquatic life.” Said Chip softly. Mickey nodded for him to continue. “But I think that Attina could be woken up. Her vitals have been stable for several days now. I think it’s just a case of shock. But, as for Ariel and Riku, that is going to take time. I believe they may be poisoned.” Goofy gasped in dismay.

“What makes you say that?” asked the King.

“I have been pouring over the hourly reports on both of their conditions since they were brought here.” Explained Chip, “Their injuries have been healing but slower than usual and their vitals are still fluctuating. Also, look here…” The rodent pointed at the pod monitor for Ariel. Goofy looked up. Several lines and bars raced across the screen.

“See that blue bar? That is measuring her magic.” he explained. Goofy watched for a moment. The bar grew steadily and the number beside it increased by increments of two. Without warning, it suddenly shrunk to half its original size. Goofy gaped.

“Her magic just vanished!” blurted Sora. “What happened?”

“The pod is using it to power the nanites that are working to heal her. My theory is that there is a poison of some kind in her system that is doing repeat damage. Thus the continuous drain on her magic. I am only trained in simple field emergency medicine, so I can only guess. I am running some blood tests but I doubt that it's a physical one. The pod would have broken it down by now. ” Chip said thoughtfully.

“I wish Minnie were here. She is a wonderful healer. She could make sense of this.” lamented Mickey with a shake of his head. At that moment, Donald returned to the room. He told the group that there would be food available soon. The soup was heating in the mess hall.

“Donald, can you do a Curaga spell on Ariel? I was waiting for you to recover a bit before asking you to try. If we are lucky, it might banish the spell if there is one.” Suggested the chipmunk.

“I guess it wouldn’t hurt to try.” mused Donald. Chip waved Goofy over then jumped into his hand. The canine knelt so that he could reach the panel on the pod. Chip fiddled with a few things and the water level decreased in Ariel’s pod until it was lower than the dome window. Chip then opened the window. Donald stepped forward and cast the spell once Goofy and Chip had gotten clear. The green energy flowed over the mermaid’s body. After a moment, it faded away. The group held their breath as they watched the wall chart. For several minutes, Ariel’s magic levels continued to climb. Everyone was waiting for them to drop again. But they held steady and continued to increase. Goofy let out a sigh of relief. Ariel was now out of danger and all Attina needed was a wake call, apparently.

“Okay! Great job, Donald! I think the Princess should been on the road to recovery now! But it maybe a few more days before she wakes up.”  cheered Chip. Goofy took the current ship medic back over to the pod so he could close it up and reset it. Once that was done, everyone looked to the one patient that they were still concerned about. The captain snuck a glance at Riku’s chart. His vitals were abysmal and his magic levels were fluctuating far worse than Ariel’s.

“Do you think the same spell will help Riku?” asked Kairi softly as she wobbled her way to the group. Sora immediately went to her side and supported her. Goofy smiled softly. They were such good friends to each other. He then looked back to the rodent in his hands.

“I am not sure, his vitals are very different from Ariel’s. It doesn’t have the same pattern. But I guess it wouldn’t hurt to try.” Answered Chip with a shrug. Goofy quickly moved to the panel on Riku’s pod. Once the pod popped open they all moved back and Donald repeated the spell a second time. The green light faded into Riku’s skin like before, but then something changed. Black wispy smoke began to rise from Riku’s body. Mickey gasped sharply and rushed forward. He held his hands out before crying out,

“Be gone!” A gentle light cascaded into the air and seemed to soak up the dark energy. Then it gently faded away. Goofy felt his heart plummet. He had seen something like this before. On that day many, many years ago, Queen Minnie’s father took a turn for the worst. The attendants that had been seeing to his comfort and health had fallen ill not long after. The Queen and some light users eventually discovered that if the dark taint was removed the sufferers would eventually recover. But it had been far too late for the King. He eventually succumbed to the darkness-born illness and died. He body had been cremated to reduce the chance of a heartless being created from the corpse. The then Princess Minnie had been devastated.

The captain had come against it again five years ago when a Dark plague swept through the Walterlands killing many of the citizens. One of the lives lost was little Pistol, Pete’s daughter. Goofy had sneaking suspicion that Pete had been driven to the Dark by it. Eventually, thanks to the efforts of healers and the Queen the plague was halted. But many bodies were burned to prevent a possible Heartless rampage. Even still some broke out, but now that they had more information, Goofy thought that they may have been Nobodies instead.

“What was… why did…?” came a choked whine. Goofy was torn from his thoughts. He glanced at the speaker. Kairi looked pale and close to tears. The girl’s question hung heavy in the air, like a guillotine blade suspended above their heads. Goofy knew that the next words that were spoken would be paramount to the group remaining together. There could be no half-truths or empty platitudes.

He looked at Donald, the fowl’s expression probably mirrored his own worried one. When he looked to his leader, the mouse’s face was impassive. Mickey had gone completely stone faced. Goofy risked another glance at the young ones in the room. Kairi had tears in her eyes, her gaze expectant. Sora was simply angry. His blue eyes were burning with accusation. His mouth twisted into a foreign shape.

“… Aura poisoning.” Came a choked response. Goofy looked back at Mickey, whom was meeting Sora’s glare squarely. “He is suffering from something called aura poisoning. All of us here knows that Darkness can in invade hearts and twist minds. It can also poison bodies. I watched a plague sweep through my homeland, taking thousands of lives with it. One of the symptoms, was this aura poisoning. It’s what happens when the balance between the Light and Shadow within a person is destroyed. In Riku’s case, he was left vulnerable because he drained himself fighting. Why it’s leaning more towards shadow, I don’t know.”

“Is there any way to help him?” whispered Sora, his expression relaxing softly. Mickey sighed.

“I am not sure. This is definitely Minnie’s domain as I said before. But there might be a way… it’s just costly. Really costly. I will have to think on it.”

The others eventually dispersed to the mess hall. Chip had returned to the command room. Mickey had been left behind in the med bay. It had been hours since the group had seen him. The captain was curious about how the King planned to save Riku. Not to mention worried. The mouse had mentioned that the only method he knew of would be costly. Could the Walterlands survive the loss of their King, especially for random teenager? The thought of having to choose was already tearing at him, he could not imagine how the King felt. King Mickey had a closer relationship with Riku than he and Donald did. Donald, Sora, and Kairi had retreated to the bunker to rest. Kairi had only just woken up and was still tired. Sora had gone to keep her company. Donald needed a nap to recover from the spellcasting earlier.

Goofy found himself wandering the ship with no aim. He eventually ended up back in the med bay. The King was still sitting next to Riku’s pod.  Goofy approached the monarch, and bowed. Mickey waved it off again.

“I told you that wasn't necessary.” he croaked. Goofy shook his head.

“What's good for goose is good for the chicken. I mean-” started Goofy. Mickey huffed out a laugh.

“I think you mean, ‘what is good for the goose is good for the gander.” corrected Mickey.

“Yeah, tha’s it! You told Kairi that it was rude to ignore her title. So, you should not ignore your own.” said the canine. Mickey sighed.

“Honestly, I am not even sure I deserve it.” Goofy gaped. Mickey Mouse had always been humble, but this was ridiculous. Mickey had clawed his way up from little to being the King of his home and a Hero to many outside of that world. Why was he doubting all his work now?

“Gosh, yer Majesty. Why would you say such a thing?! You do! You earned it the right way.” protested Goofy. 

“Yes, I did. But what I am doing with it?! I was supposed to protect my people and they died. Minnie had to pick up my slack and that- that almost cost us. It was Minnie’s spell that kept Disney Castle safe during Ansem’s Heartless’s rampage. It was Sora, Donald, and you who went to her aid when the Cornerstone was compromised!” railed Mickey scathingly. Goofy winced. Guilt. It was a funny thing. It could turn any victory into a defeat. Any triumph into an abject failure with little evidence. It was even more powerful when it involved people you care about.

“Well, _you_ sent _us_ to find _Sora_. And with his help the Heartless was defeated! He saved Kingdom Hearts! _You_ and Riku risked your lives to seal the door from the other side. Then _you_ and Riku helped Sora when Organization XIII took his memories. If it weren’t for _you_ then Xehanort’s Heartless may have won and the Castle would have fallen a couple of years ago!” said Goofy stoutly.

“But…” protested the mouse. Goofy stumbled over his words momentarily as he fought the urge to censor himself while his liege spoke.

“No! Look, you are only one person, sire. Just one of many. You can’ be everywhere at once and you can’ tell the future. But you can do your best. And you have done everything you could have done! Minnie too! We all have! Yes, we were caught off guard, sir.” Goofy takes a breath. His chest full of conviction and pain. “But I can tell you for _damned_ sure that we are not beaten! Not by a long shot!” Mickey stared at Goofy like he was a stranger. His eyes wide with disbelief. 

“Goof…” he mutters softly.

“Sora is chomping at the bit to take down anything that would harm his friends or innocents! I watched him do it countless times! I know if you would only tell him of your fears and concerns he would try to move every star in the sky to help! Kairi! She immediately jumped in to help in Atlantica! She protected Sora in Hollow Bastion and she came to his aid in the World that Never Was. Riku has followed you without question since you met! He would proudly stand next to his friends in helping you!” he continued.

“Goofy…” came Mickey’s voice. This voice was not a whisper, but a commanding voice. The canine suddenly came to his senses. Dear lord! He had all but blessed out the King of the Walterlands! What was he thinking?!! He immediately dropped to his knees with his head pressed to the floor.

“Rise, Captain George Goof. I am not offended. In fact, I am ashamed.” Said the king honestly. Goofy looked up from the floor. Mickey was leaning over him.

“Wha…?”

“I was trying to do so much on my own. Always moving to solve the next problem.” laughed Mickey sadly. “But you are right, we aren't beaten yet.” Goofy grinned. It was good to see the King acting more like himself. Mickey ushered Goofy to his feet. “People called me mad for making you my captain. But you have once again proven that my trust was not misplaced.” Goofy smiled.

“Never gonna happen!” said the canine loyally. “But…” He looked over at the Pod again. One crisis of conscience had been averted. But there was still another looming over them. Riku’s fate. The boy was still blissfully unaware. Mickey heaved a sigh.

“There may be a way to help him but I had been struggling with myself about putting it forward. The cost is very high. It requires life energy to work. Minnie walked me through the steps. But it was meant to be a last resort. I know Cure and that is about it aside from this spell. But you and I both know that boy is in a perilous position. He   could die within days. And not to seem callous, but that child would make a terrifying Heartless or Nobody. We best try to avoid that scenario.” Goofy nodded. Though the discussion was stark, it was necessary. Just as Riku made a phenomenal ally, he could… any of them really… become a terrifying adversary. Also, losing even one Keyblade wielder at this point would be a disaster. Clearly something wicked was moving around behind the scenes and they were already behind.

“So, exactly how much energy are we talking, yer Highness?” asked Goofy.

“Minnie made it pretty clear that it was a sacrificial spell.” Said the mouse slowly. Despair started to creep down Goofy’s spine again. In hindsight, it should have been obvious. After all, balance was a huge concept in magic and the world. So, a life for a life. Someone more than likely would have to die to save Riku.

“I see.” Said Goofy softly as he mulled over what to do. There were so many if and buts surrounding such a simple either or scenario that Goofy did not even know where to start.

“Honestly, my biggest problem is Riku himself! He would string me up by my tail if he found out that someone died to save him, no matter who it was.” He groaned. Goofy could see the boy being angry about that. Not only that they would be down another friend anyway. Goofy knew of at least 3 people that would give their lives for the boy in question. Unfortunately, losing any of those three would put them in the same conundrum.

“Well, I say we put all our cards on the table with everyone else. And make this decision as a group your Highness. For now, maybe we should try to get another problem taken care of.” Suggested Goofy.

“Oh right, Princess Attina.” Said Mickey. Mickey called for Chip.

“Yes, your Highness?”

“Can you try to wake, Princess Attina?”  requested Mickey. Chip answered in the affirmative and promised to set to work. The two made their way over to the Princess’s pod and waited. After a few moments, the pod started emitting a strident alarm. They watched as the mermaid slowly began to stir in the tank. Her tail began to sway as she tossed her head back and forth. Some of her hair floated around her face in a messy halo. Her eyes snapped open and she began looking around wildly. Her tail lashed about creating bubbles and churning the water. The beeping was cut off and the water level in tank started to decrease. Then the pod slowly opened.

The young woman immediately sat up and glanced around frantically for moment. Her eyes finally fell on him and the King. She froze.

“We are sorry for the fright, your Highness. But we needed to wake you.” Explained Mickey with his hands up in a non-threatening gesture. The princess still didn’t say a word, but she was studying them. Mickey slowly moved closer and she finally reacted. She tried to swim away but nearly fell out of the Pod. She ended up splashing water over the sides and onto the floor. She then seemed to realize that she was in the pod. She gazed at her lap and then around at the metal surrounding her.

“Where?” she finally rasped.

“You are aboard one of my hangar ships, Princess. We were brought here by a special travel device I was wearing. You happened to be holding on to me when it was set off. So, you were brought with me. However, it seems that the abrupt ride knocked you out.” Explained the King. He made his way closer to the pod. Princess Attina’s eyes followed his every step. She slowly pushed herself into the furthest corner of the pod. Clearly she was frightened.

“No need to be a’scared, Princess. We’re not plannin’ ta hurt ya.” Goofy said reassuringly. She remained huddled in the corner, her face tense. Mickey backed away from the pod. A pensive look stole over the King’s face. After a moment, the King let out a soft ‘a ha!’. He closed his eyes. Suddenly, a soft light covered the mouse. When the light faded, the mouse was gone. In his place there was a familiar sea lion. She looked dumbfounded for a moment.

“How?” she rasped.

“Magic, princess. Our garments allow us to traverse different worlds without harm or standing out.” explained Mickey. There is another flash of light and the King was in his normal form. “I am sorry that we did not get to talk properly. I am King Michael Theodore Mouse. I come from the Walterlands.” The princess looked a little less tense. Her shoulders had come down from around her ears. Her countenance looked a lot more relaxed.

“What happened? Ice...? My… father?” she questioned. The two looked at each other. Then back at the princess. Mickey swallowed.

“We believe that Morgana was responsible for the attack on the palace. It may have been some kind of weapon. It froze your world. It was simple luck that we survived.” He admitted. The princess went pale. She shook her head.

“No… no no no no no!” she whimpered. Goofy looked to Mickey helplessly. He sighed.

“Will you see how the others are?” he asked. Goofy nodded. He bowed quickly and left the room. The canine became lost in his thoughts as he made for the barracks. He was pretty sure the others were still resting. When he reached the doors, he could pick up voices on the other side. It seemed they were no longer sleeping. Goofy entered the room.

“—do you think it means something?” asked Kairi. Donald was sitting on Goofy’s bunk with his hand on his bill.

“Maybe. I mean, you have never even seen Hades. But you described him perfectly!” said the duck after a moment.

“Yeah, although I don’t know who those three women might be. But maybe we should talk to the King once things settle down. Maybe it has something to do with the whole Princess of Light thing.” Offered Sora. Donald nodded along.

“Maybe--- oh, Goofy! Hi!” said Kairi. She must had spotted him out the corner of her eye. She had stopped mid-sentence and turned to greet him.

“Have you seen the King?” asked Sora as Goofy moved further into the room. Goofy nodded.

“Yup. He is currently talking with Princess Attina.” Said Goofy.

“Oh! She’s awake now?” asked Kairi. He nodded.

“But she’s pretty upset right now, though,” said the captain as he slumped onto the bed next to Donald.

“I bet. I wished we could have stopped her.” Sighed Sora. The room went silent as a somber feeling settled on the adventurers.

“Any change with Riku or Ariel?” asked Donald after a while. Goofy shook his head. Then he was reminded of his and the King’s conversation from earlier. Ariel would eventually recover enough to wake up on her own, but Riku would not. They would be lucky if he did not take a turn for the worse in the next day or so. Frustration began to well up inside him. They were trapped into making a tough decision. No matter what they decided to do about in the end someone was going to die.

“Goofy?” he was pulled from his thoughts by Sora calling his name. The canine looked up and was immediately caught by blue eyes. “Are you ok?”

“Oh—um, yeah. Just worried is all.” He finally sputtered. Sora accepted his half-truth and returned to talking with Kairi about whatever discussion they had been having when he walked in. His feelings must have shown on his face. Sora questioning had caught him off guard. He had agreed to discuss everything when everyone involved could speak. So, he had to keep what he knew to himself for now.

“—I just think it’s so weird that I am having these dreams? Visions?” said Kairi thoughtfully. Dreams?

“What dreams?” asked Goofy, glad for the distraction. The young woman then launched into a quick tale involving Hades and three women that shared one eyeball. There apparently had been a theft of something from the Underworld. Goofy had to admit, it was interesting to say the least. It was a bit of a bizarre break from all the bad new and happenings lately. They agree to mention it to the King so that everyone could keep an eye out for anything out of the ordinary.

Eventually, the two teens drifted off again. Sora and Kairi were wrapped around one another dead to the world. Donald was nodding off next to him. Goofy even caught himself yawning. Maybe a nap would not be a bad idea. The canine rose to his feet and tucked the dozing Donald into the bunk. He then scaled the ladder carefully and stretched out on the top bunk. He eventually nodded off as he counted sheep in his head.  

Voices and the door opening woke him up some time later. Goofy glanced over the side of the bunk. Mickey and Donald were walking into the room.

“Good morning, everyone. I am sorry to bother you but we are running short on time and have some important decisions to make.” He said. The others began slowly moving. Before long, everyone was gathered in the cockpit area of the ship again. Mickey looked over everyone that was present. Goofy’s heart squeezed in his chest, he knew what this conversation was about. The group made their way to the chairs in the room. Goofy’s eyebrows rose in surprise. In one of the chairs sat Ariel. The rest of the group must have seen her too because he can feel when they all freeze.

“Ariel!” said Sora enthusiastically. The redhead gave a weak smile and nod. The others got settled quickly at Mickey’s urging.

“Thanks to time and magic, the princess is able to join us. Ariel has quite a story to tell.” Said Mickey as an opening. Goofy turned to face the princess, and waited.

“I- um… after Sora disappeared. The others attacked Ursula. She was strong. She caught them. Then Morgana showed up talking about how she needed… the… the energy..” Ariel said haltingly. Her voice petered out.

“It’s ok, take your time, Princess,” soothed Mickey. Ariel took a few steadying breaths. Her skin was pale and she looked wrung out. Clearly she had woken up not too long ago. Goofy could admit that it was still strange to see the mermaid with legs given that he knew she had been living as a human for a while. Her green and white outfit was tasteful though.

“The energy, she said… it was needed to power her weapon. I thought it was controlling Ursula, but it wasn’t. We fought over it and I managed to make her drop it with a light spell, I think. Next thing I know, I am holding a Keyblade.” She explains softly, “She managed to hurt me though.” The young woman absently rubbed at her side. “I went back to help Riku, he was fighting Ursula. We cast a light spell together to bring her down finally.”

“Wait, you have a Keyblade, Ariel?” Sora asked excitedly. Ariel nodded tentatively.

“I believe so. I just haven’t a clue where it—” Ariel confirmed before there was a flash of light and the aforementioned Keyblade made an appearance. Ariel looked stunned as the canine felt.

“So, another Key has appeared. But then again I am not surprised.” Mickey says. “King Triton did mention that your mother had been a previous wielder.” Ariel gaped openly with wide eyes. She stared at the Key in her hand with wonder and sadness equally present in her gaze.

“Ok. Ariel and Riku brought down the undead witch. What about the living one?” Asked Kairi.

“Morgana tried to use the weapon on Riku and me. But she was turned to ice instead and then the weapon exploded… ice started appearing everywhere. That last concrete thing I remembered was swimming away from the ice chasing us.” Finished the mermaid. The group sat quietly. Goofy now had his Captain of the Guard hat on. A weapon like that was terrifying to think about. It had possibly wiped out the entire world. Even the Cornerstone of Light may not be able to fight something like that. But on the other hand, it seemed to be a one-time use type of thing.

However, something about Ariel’s story was bugging him. Something was not adding up. Usually, villains wanted to crush their enemies or horde power for themselves. So why had Morgana just doomed not only her world but herself, too?

“I find it strange that Morgana took ‘erself out, too. It doesn’ make sense. At least, in the context of the other villains we’ve faced⸺” muttered Goofy. The others turned their attention to the canine and he realized that he had spoken aloud. “I mean, many villains had gotten themselves into trouble in the end. But usually, that came about through our meddlin’ or Heartless. The only exceptions were Xamnas and Ansem’s Heartless. Those two were extreme examples. They went in with their eyes completely open.”

“Hmmm… agree with you on that, Goof. Most villains have a singular goal in mind that is usually personal and specific. This doesn’t make sense,” said Mickey.

“Well… it started with Eric, right?” spoke up Sora thoughtfully. Goofy felt a touch of sympathy when Ariel winced at the mention of the prince’s name.

“What do you mean, Sora?” asked Donald.

“Well, I think this was about Ursula.” Said Sora.

“You mentioned that name before, when we first arrived and that you fought her reanimated corpse. Who was she?” prompted Mickey. Sora nodded.

“She was a sea witch that I was foolish enough to listen to. I traded my voice for legs. It was all a trick to get my father’s trident and control of the seas. She almost succeeded but between Sora, Donald, Goofy, and Eric she was defeated. She died taking a broken bow to the gut.” Said Ariel as she bowed her head in shame.

“Morgana made those corpses impervious to electrical attacks. We had already discussed the possibility that she was planning on using them on Ariel and Triton. I am thinking that Morgana was initially trying to get back at those that had killed her sister.” Said Sora. Goofy could see the sense in that theory. Morgana was also a witch with powers. She used what she knew to get back at those that she perceived as taking her sister from her.

“I see. So, I assume that the weapon was a last resort thing.” Mused Mickey. “Ariel, before she turned to ice, did she say anything else?” Ariel frowned into her lap for a moment.

“No… she screamed… like she was in pain. I don’t think she knew it would attack her too.” That made more sense. Morgana wasn’t looking to end a world just punished those that wronged her. But she got in over her head with a weapon she probably knew little about.

“But that still leaves an important question unanswered,” said Donald. “Where did she get it?” _Where indeed_ , thought the canine. They had no leads for that. After a moment, Ariel started up the conversation again,

“Your Highness, I want to say thank you for saving my sister. I also apologize for her rudeness. This has been a huge blow for both of us. I hope you understand.” Mickey accepts the thanks and the apology gracefully. Ariel thanked Sora and everyone else for their help as well. The group collectively waved off the praise. They had been glad to help, what little they accomplished. When she mentioned that she also needed to thank Riku when he awoke sent a shiver down his spine. Right. Riku. He turned his head and caught the King’s eyes and held them. The mouse tilted his head in a questioning manner. Goofy raised his eyebrows as if to say, “well, no better time than now…”. Mickey heaved a sigh.

“Now, that you are awake Ariel, you and your sister can decide what to do about your situation. I have several suggestions, but before we discuss that, there is another matter that needs our attention. So, about Riku, there is no easy way to say this…” Mickey trails off. “He is in real danger of dying from something called Aura poisoning. But I know of a way to possibly help him.”

“How—” Kairi.

“What do—”   Sora. Their words tumbled over each other as they demanded answers. Mickey tried to calm them but they weren’t really listening. Goofy put his fingers to his lips and blew. The sharp noise caused Ariel to near leap to her feet in fright. Sora, Donald, and Kairi all glared at him.

“Thank you, Captain. I was getting to that. There is a rejuvenation spell that can help, but it requires a huge payment. Basically, the spell is the magical equivalent of ‘A life for a life’. From what I understand, it will completely restore a person. I am torn because it is high price to pay.” Explained the King. “So, the choice is let him die and burn the body or save him and lose someone else potentially. Knowing the group as I do, the former is not even on the table as an option. But that brings us to the next problem, it would be next to impossible to choose who to use. But that is the best we can do for him with such a short window of time.” The room was once again filled with a stony silence.

“I have been thinking about this for a while your highness. I think I may a solution it may not be a complete cure all, but it might get Riku well enough to survive until we can reach a real town or physician.” Said Donald. The looks of hope on Sora and Kairi’s faces was heartbreaking.

“Please, put your idea forward.” Coaxed Mickey.

“Magic is all about intent. So, I was thinking if you explained what you know, your Majesty, we could create a workaround for the spell.” Said the duck. Goofy was impressed. That seemed to be a neat alternative to the former idea.

“Ok. What would the alternative look like?” Sora asked.

“Well, I thought that if we share the burden between more than one person the cost could be lessened.” That was brilliant! Goofy hadn’t even considered that!

“Oh! Hmm… so create a similar spell using multiple people making a sacrifice rather than one giving it all. Sounds reasonable.” Agreed Mickey. “How many would you need?”

“Qua—uhh… well we would need a strong magical number. We would have to account for Riku too… balance of light and dark… need to be neutral… and… ahhh…” Donald mumbled as he thought.

“Take your time to think about the spell, Donald. Hey Chip could you bring Donald some writing material?” Mickey called.

“Yes, sir!” agreed Chip before darting from the room. The mouse turned to Ariel,

“I know your sister is not awake right now, but what do you think about going to another world and looking for a way to save your world and possibly your people? Or would you rather us take you back to Atlantica’s surface and let the two of you figure it out? We have been trying to get some form of contact established with Atlantica since the incident. No such luck. We can’t even ping a landing point anymore.” Ariel’s shoulders fell. The young woman struggled for a moment. Her indecision was plain on her face. She fiddled with the blade of her weapon as she thought. Her fingers slowly feeling the soft pink stone it was made from.

“I have no idea how Attina will react to being forced to make a decision but for me, I can sleep easier if I know I exhausted every option and opportunity given to me.” She finally answered. Mickey nodded.

“Your father mentioned someone that might have some information that I am looking for. This person may be able to help you too. I can also teach what I know about that Key and I know Sora would be willing to help as well.” Said the King. Ariel nodded at this.

“I am more than grateful for anything you can do, King Mickey. I am also willing to help with the spell to heal Riku. After all, he saved my life.” Said the mermaid.

“Of course, but you should really get more rest first. Everyone should before we try anything.” Mickey suggested. A moment later, Dale runs into the room with a notepad and pen stuck in his mouth and Chip trailing him. Dale raced over to Donald and presented him with the items. Chip on the other hand raced over to the King, and scaled the mouse. He then leaned over and whispered something in his ear. Mickey’s eyes went wide. Goofy moved closer to the two. He caught the tail end of the conversation.

“It’s not coming from Atlantica… but I think the coding might be ours.” Whispered Chip. Goofy blinked. A signal coming from home? All the way out here? That could not mean anything good. Mickey’s eyes narrowed in concern.

“Both you and Dale get to cracking that code and let me know the moment you do!” Mickey muttered. Chip saluted smartly before scampering away with Dale on his heels. Goofy turned back to the others to see the teens talking quietly and Donald was completely absorbed in his spell crafting. A heavy groan brought his attention back to Mickey. The mouse was pulling a frustrated hand down his face.

“If it’s not one thing it’s another…” he laments after a moment. “Why do I get the feeling that this is just the tip of an iceberg of trouble?!” Goofy shook his head. He would not bet that his King was wrong. Clearly the forces of Darkness were moving again. But the question was why now? They had defeated the ringleaders, Organization XIII had been defeated. And… Maleficent and Pete were… still out there as far as he knew. They had been seen during the battle of Radiant Garden. They had defended the group’s retreat when Xemnas had shown up.

“Do you think this is _her_ doing?” asked Goofy.

“Hmmm… it is possible that Maleficent might be moving behind the scenes again. But what can we do now? We wouldn’t know where to start.” Replies the mouse.

“Hey, Sora. Could Maleficent be the woman they were referring to in my dream?” Kairi asked suddenly. Mickey frowned in confusion while Goofy perked up.

“Maybe. Your dream mentioned that someone stole something from Hades right?” asked Goofy. She nodded. She described the woman carrying a jar with a reflective top. She had gray hair and was dressed in gray skirt and tunic of some kind. The description did not match Maleficent at all.

“Hmmm… that does not sound like Maleficent. Too bad, that now means we have to be alert for three possible antagonists rather than two.” Mickey said.

“Three?” asked Ariel, confused.

“Well, yeah. One, we have no idea who gave Morgana that weapon. Two, Maleficent is still lurking about and Heartless and monsters have been sighted in other places. Three someone robbed the God of Death in Olympus. Who knows what they stole.” Explained Sora.

“Yep, it’s better to assume they are all separate incidences rather than be blindsided when someone else pops up. That has happened in the past and we paid for it.” Added Mickey.

“Oh boy, this is going to be a long trip isn’t?” groaned Sora. Goofy chuckled at the boy’s wit. It was true that things had started snowballing pretty quickly. Well the only thing left to do was wait.

Two days later, the group with the exception of Attina was once again gathered in the cockpit. In terms of good news, Donald had finally produced what he thought was a workable spell. Chip and Dale had managed to break the coded message and was ready to share, they had called the meeting. Everyone was definitely feeling better with the exceptions of Ariel and Riku. Which was understandable. Riku had actually gotten worse. That was part of the bad news.

The other bad news was that Attina was still pretty hostile. Once the princess had gotten over her shock, she had become rather belligerent. She especially had it out for her sister. Ariel had taken to wandering the ship and hanging out with Sora and Kairi to avoid her. When she was asked for her input to their situation, she all but told them to fuck off as politely as she could. Mickey simply shrugged it off as it being the anger stage of grief. He figured that she would come out of it when she was ready.

“Ok, so Donald. What do you have for us?” asked Mickey. Donald launched into an explanation of the spell. It was a simple balanced healing spell broken into four parts. It was meant to balance Riku’s spiritual alignment and then heal him somewhat. It would still require the boy to rest though. After some discussion it was decided that Sora, Mickey, Kairi and Ariel would participate in the ritual part of the spell with Donald controlling the final incantation.

“Alright everyone, I have good news and bad news. The good news is the message was from Disney Castle. So no enemy contact.” Explained Dale. Then Chip spoke up,

“However, the message itself is the bad news. It was from Gadget! The castle… it’s under siege!” Goofy, Sora, Donald, and Mickey leapt to their feet and protested. Goofy’s stomach dropped down into his shoes and his heart tried to crawl out of his throat. It was fluttering wildly, choking off words and air. Maxie! Sylvia! Roxie! Pj! The Queen and Daisy! What had happened to them? Were they ok?

“How? I thought the Cornerstone was supposed to—” babbled Sora.

“It has been compromised before, rememba?” answered Donald tersely.

“Be-besides… it only protects against the Dark elements like Heartless. It won’t protect them from a siege or coup.” Growled Mickey. Goofy swallowed hard at the furious scowl on his King’s face. He had never seen the royal look so angry before. It was a little frightening.

“What do you want us to do your Majesty?” Goofy asked tightly, forcing words past the knot in his throat.

“I know that everyone here has already given their opinions on what they want to do. Attina is not in a mind to make one. The library in my castle has a lot of information in it. If we take care of the problem there, we can do some preliminary research there and rest before striking out again to look for a solution to our Atlantica problem.” Suggested Mickey. The others nodded in agreement.

“Well, as my son always says, let’s do it to it!” says Goofy enthusiastically. He got grins all around.

“Alright! Chip! Dale! Set the fastest course towards home. I wanna avoid the gates and the monsters in them if we can. As for the rest of us, let’s get work on that ritual. Even at our fastest speed, without the gates it will take a few days. The sooner the ritual is complete the more time we have to prepare for whatever is attacking my kingdom.” said Mickey. The others gave hasty salutes and got to work. Chip set off to move Riku to a more accessible area for the ritual with Donald following behind. Sora and Kairi trailed the two. Dale scurried away to the control center to start the hangar towards Disney Castle. Mickey stared out one of the bay windows for a moment, clearly deep in thought. Goofy moved to his side.  

“Should we really be putting energy into a spell that might not work? I mean I want to save Riku like everyone else, but yer Majesty… we could very well be walking right into trouble.” Warned the Captain. “Shouldn’t we go in with the best we have? The situation as it is remains preco- dangerous but not completely hopeless. Why not wait and have Minnie help Riku. Save our strength if there is a fight.”

“I thought about it. But Riku doesn’t have that kind of time available. Not only that but I agree that we need to put our best forward, and for me that is having every available card on the table. I have currently have 6 experienced adventurers 3 of which are proficient Keyblade users. Another 2 that are novice Keyblade users and travelers. Currently, I have a small band of 7 including myself that I can rely on. If things are as bad as Gadget’s message seems to suggest, then we need all hands on deck if we have no real might behind us. So, the risk of showing up mob handed and a little tired outweighs a rested but demoralized one, especially with the threat Heartless about.” Argued the mouse. Goofy thought it was a bit of a stretch but he would not argue. He quickly followed his king as he left to follow the others.

When they found the others, they were gathered around Riku waiting. The room was bare save for the Pod and the people within it. Chip had vacated the room as the two walked in.

“Okay, now that everyone is here, I am going to cast a purification spell on the room and all of us. While I take care of that, you all should focus on centering yourselves for the ritual.” Ordered Donald. “Goofy you’re going to be the witness.” The canine nodded and headed to a corner to let the others prepare. After a several moments everything was in place. The others slowly gathered together again. The wizard then began placing people into position around the open Pod. Kairi took a position at the North point and represented Light and the element of Earth. Sora took up the East point on the Dark side while representing the element of Air. The king took the South position representing Dark and the element of Fire. Lastly Ariel was in the West position also representing Light and the element of Water. The males in the circle represented Dark given they had been exposed to the Dark before and were less like to experience any side effects from the ritual.

“Alright, Donald now what?” asked Sora.

“We need to find a totem for the elements.” said the duck. Everyone face-palmed.

“Why didn’t you mention that before we got into position?” asked Mickey wearily. Donald gave a sheepish laugh.

“I am nervous okay! This is my first attempt at a completely new spell…” Donald rattled. Eventually, his words dissolved into unintelligible gibberish as he got more and more agitated. Goofy and Mickey attempted to calm him down. The captain caught Sora rolling his eyes out the corner of his own and had to stifle a laugh.

“Well, I represent Earth, right? So, I need something that represents that.” Mused Kairi. The three stopped their bickering and looked to the young princess.

“Yes,” said Donald. The girl looked pensive for a moment. Then her eyes lit up. She reached into one of her pockets and pulled out a shell that had been carved into some five pointed shape.

“Will this do? It is a shell from the Islands shaped like a fruit that is known for magical abilities. Donald nodded. The girl nodded and remained in her position. Ariel assured Donald that she could produce her own water via magic, after all, the sea ran through her veins. Sora could use magic to produce wind if necessary. Donald was sure a simple bit of his breath would do. Mickey planned to produce a simple magical flame.

“Ok, everybody, I’m gonna start the spell. Once it has started, it has to run to completion.” Said Donald. “Goofy stay behind me. You just have ta answer a question and that is all.” Goofy nodded. Donald took a deep breath and closed his eyes. The others did the same. Donald held his staff Fantasia out before him. The jeweled top began to pulse with light and then began to float and shift through the colors of the rainbow. Suddenly, white symbols began to dance from the jewel. The script began to float through the air and began to circle Donald. The script continued to rise to ceiling hiding the duck from view. Goofy stepped back with a gasp. The scripts continued to spin around growing faster and faster. Suddenly, there was a flash of light and when he could see again, Donald was glowing and there was a circle of glowing script around him. He slowly turned to Goofy and spoke, but he did not recognize his friend’s voice,

“Captain George Goof of the Court of Michael and Minerva Mouse, I beseech thou speak true… Hast thou any objections to what we are to do?” Goofy gulped. A line of white magic extended from the circle and slowly made its way to and around Goofy. He could feel the buzz of magic that filled the room now. It was almost stifling. But he swallowed hard and spoke,

“I, Captain George Goof of the Court of Michael and Minerva Mouse, fin’ no reason ta object.” Donald opened his eyes and they began to glow with the same white energy. He turned back to face the others. He tapped the ground with the end of the staff and it once more began to emit the script. It looped around the group surrounding the pod and once again spiraled to the ceiling. Another flash of light later and the floor underneath the group was glowing stridently. Donald spoke once more.

“Holder of the Northern post, Princess Kairi of Radiant Garden, do you submit your energy to this ritual?” Kairi responded immediately,

“I, Princess Kairi of Radiant Garden, do submit my energy and anything else required.” Another tap from the staff saw a cone of white light shoot up around Kairi. He then turned to Sora.      

 “Holder of the Eastern post, Knight Sora of the court of Princess Kairi of Radiant Garden, do you submit your energy to this ritual?” Sora spluttered in surprise but responded immediately,

“I-I, Knight Sora of the court of Princess Kairi of Radiant Garden, do submit my energy and anything else required.” Another tap from the staff saw another cone of white light shoot up around Sora. He then turned to the King.

“Holder of the Southern post, King Michael Theodore Mouse of Walterlands, do you submit your energy to this ritual?” Mickey replies firmly,

“I, King Michael Mouse of Walterlands, do submit my energy and anything else required.” The King was immediately obscured by another tower of light. Donald finally faced Ariel. She stared back resolutely.

“Holder of the Western post, Queen Ariel Sewyn of Dane and Princess of Atlantica, do you submit your energy to this ritual?”

“I, Queen Ariel Sewyn of Dane and Princess of Atlantica, do submit my energy and anything else required.” She responded. Goofy had to shield his eyes from the amount of light that had taken over the room. When the light finally dimmed, the others were locked in a circle of glowing script like Donald’s. There were individual circles at each person’s feet as well. They too were glowing.

“Present your elemental tokens and mark the one to be healed on his heart. Earth.” Called Donald. Kairi stepped forward and laid the charm on boy’s chest. It continued to glow. She then stepped back into her circle. A line of white energy shimmered into view between the girl and her token. The energy surrounding her made her hair float and filled her eyes with light. It continued like this. When Sora came up he blew gently on Riku and the boy in bed began to glow. Mickey let a few tongues of flames lick over Riku’s body. Ariel let a gentle rain fall from her fingertips. Eventually, everyone involved was connected to Riku by a thread of light. It was an amazing sight to behold. He knew that his friend had spent time working with Merlin on his magic but to see the results was mind blowing.

“By the power of the elements arise, Prince Riku of Kagemorehi, and be healed.” Cried Donald in his otherworldly timbre as he brought down his staff. An arc of magic sizzled as it raced along the floor leaping along the path created by the circles. It practically exploded as it made contact with glowing token resting on his chest. The light exploded into sparkles. The glows died away until only the barriers on the floor remained lit. The token was now floating horizontally above Riku’s chest spinning. Suddenly, the black smoke began to rise from Riku’s body again.

“Now, guardians of this mortal soul give your energy to rebalance him so that he may walk among us again, unhindered.” Cried Donald. Energy began to bleed from the people standing around the bed. From the girls came more white light, while from the guys a black light. The two lights arched over the pod, and met in the middle. They swirled around one another until them blended into a grey light that struck the ceiling. The light fanned out and fell to the ground creating a gray barrier around Riku and the floating elemental token. The smoke curled and swirled around within the barrier unable to slip past it. The token began to glow brighter and spin faster.

Slowly, the smoke was sucked into the token. It was slowly being sucked from Riku’s body. Then once all of it was gone, the token slowed down and reversed direction. The gray barrier was slowly being sucked into the token and slowly being funneled into Riku. Once all the light was gone, the token fell to ashes and dissipated. The others collapsed onto the ground as the barriers that surrounded them dropped. Goofy rushed forward to check on his friends. Donald was unconscious when the man reached him. He shook his shoulder roughly.

“Donald! Come on buddy, you gotta get up!” he pleaded. Donald groaned softly and cracked open his eyes.

“Did its work?” he slurred. Goofy sighed in relief. He looked over to the pod and saw the others were slowly coming back around. He left Donald to gather his wits and knelt next to his King.

“Are you ok, yer Majesty?” he asked. Mickey nodded slowly.

“That sure was somethin’. Donald is truly a wonder.” He said after a moment. Goofy then looked to the last of the people surrounding the pod. Kairi and Sora were climbing to their feet by leaning on each other. They wobbled their way to the bed to check on their friend. Sora gasped and Kairi cried,

“Riku!” Goofy helped the King to his feet and the mouse stumbled over to the other side to look. Goofy returned to his full height and looked. Riku was awake, thank the stars. He was pale but awake. Riku attempted to speak but could only manage a croak as tears started to slide down his face. Sora and Kairi began to panic. Mickey called for Chip to turn the Pod back on. The pod lit up and the virtual chart reappeared above Riku’s pod. His vitals were miles better than where they were and were holding steady. His magic was steadily climbing. Riku finally was on the mend. Goofy was relieved to see that their attempt was not in vain. Everyone was exhausted but in good spirits and that was a far cry from where they were a few days ago. Goofy would gladly take it.       

 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thanks for reading! I would love any comments! Sorry this was a day or so late! I hoped you enjoyed it and I will see you all in 2 weeks!
> 
> You can find me on Tumblr @[EbonyPhD](https://www.tumblr.com/blog/ebonyphd). I post direct links and info on my writing on my writer blog @[Wolfkeeper989](https://www.tumblr.com/blog/wolfkeeper989)


	5. Brick by Boring Brick, Part 1

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Riku rejoins the crew and the group finally enters the fight for the Walterlands!

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hello! Sorry for the random hiatus! I got caught up in some real life stuff and writing up a storm for some Boku no Hero events I was in! You can my BnHA stuff in my profile! But here is chapter 5 for those still reading! Thanks once again to [Diana Zephyr](https://archiveofourown.org/users/Diana_Zephyr/pseuds/Diana_Zephyr) for being an awesome beta!
> 
> Disclaimer: WolfKeeper989 doesn’t own Kingdom Hearts or any of its characters. All of Disney’s stuff belongs to Disney. All of EA’s stuff belongs to them! But the idea and any original characters are mine!

Riku barely remembers anything between the fight in Atlantica and waking up. He sometimes thought he heard voices in passing during those times he drifted alone in the dark. He  _ hated _ the dark now. It was where all his faults and insecurities dwelt. When he slept, if he did at all, all of his mistakes came crawling back to him from the shadows to torment him. This time had been no different. He had passed in and out of fever driven nightmares. But he could never wake himself up, no matter how hard he tried. Eventually, they lost all sense of reason or consistency. They just became colored kaleidoscopes of emotions that stung and pricked at him like bees, leaving behind stringers filled with regret and self-loathing. He had seemed to float forever in this swarm before a warmth filled him from head to toe.

Something deep within him began to drift forward, being pulled in some direction. Riku wanted to fight at first, but it felt so nice. He succumbed to the call of whatever it was and suddenly found himself alive but weak. He woke up surrounded by his friends. All of them, and to his surprise Ariel. He was so relieved to see them all that he cried. The others had panicked immediately, which then turned his sobs into laughter. The laughter soon turned into a rasping cough. Someone had gotten some water and they helped him to drink once his coughing fit subsided. He had not remained conscious for long after that.

When he awoke again, Sora was sitting by his bedside. The brown-haired boy was slumped over on the side of his bed. He vaguely recalled something about being on a ship, his thoughts slipped through his head like oil. His body ached in patches. Some of them throbbed with deep pain, others stung, and some just pulsed with pain. He was grateful for the pain, though. It seemed to be the only thing keeping his head tied to his body. Most of the time, Riku felt that he would have just floated off somewhere if the aches in his body had not kept him grounded. A sudden spasm seized his right arm and shoulder. A burning pain lanced through him and he let out a hissed groan. Sora jerked awake. 

“Riku! Hang on, ok! I’ll get Chip to give you something.” He said making to leave. Riku reached out without thinking and latched on to his wrist. That had not been a good idea. Light blinded Riku for a moment as his body was set aflame by the sudden movement. The air was knocked from his lungs. He managed to lock eyes with his friend, pleading with them. Riku did not want to go back into oblivion. The pain had served an unintentional purpose. It had burned all the cobwebs from his mind. He was now able to recall that this was the second day since he had woken up. He had been reminded of what happened at least 4 times by 3 different people. Sora had frozen mid-step. 

“Please,” Riku croaked. “no more meds.” Sora frowned in concern as he took his hand from his wrist and held it in his own. 

“Riku,” he sighed, “why are you so stubborn?! There is no reason for you to suffer.” Riku gave a hollow bark of laughter. A groan quickly followed it.

“There is.” He gasped afterwards. Sora frowned.

“I nearly got you and Kai killed… I hurt people… supposed to be… a leader… got lead around like a… a fucking  _ dog _ . Just so…” he panted. He was so tired. It hurt. It all hurt so much. He squeezed Sora’s hand harder. There was a soft incessant beeping somewhere. Suddenly, a warm, viscous lassitude began to slide through his veins. What? No… he did not want to sleep anymore. He did not want to be alone again. 

“It’s gonna be ok.” Whispered Sora. Riku’s vision began to blur and his hearing was muffled.

“Don’t… don’t leave…” he pleaded. As the last of his consciousness fell away, Riku swore he heard a soft reply,

“No worries, big brother, I’m not going anywhere.”,

When Riku was chased out sleep by a nightmare, he found it was nighttime. That did not improve his anxiety any. He looked around the room. It looked mostly empty. Ariel’s sister was still sleeping in the pod she woke up in refusing to join the others. Unlike Ariel, who had accepted Donald’s magical assistance and regained her legs. She had been by once before to thank him for saving her. He had awkwardly accepted it. She practically lit up when he thanked her in return.

Riku continued to stare at the ceiling. He still couldn’t believe that she had given up part of herself for him. While he was touched and annoyed with his two stubborn friends, he was not surprised that they had given that much to save him. It was in their nature to do so. But Ariel? They had been complete strangers. He a lowly criminal compared to a crowned Queen. King Mickey’s contribution had also surprised him. While he considered the King an ally and tentatively called him a friend out of earshot, Riku was under no delusions. Mickey was a king with responsibilities to the worlds and his subjects. Not some prideful, attention starved brat.

Riku groaned in frustration and carefully rolled over onto his uninjured side. His current line of thinking was just leaving him more depressed and anxious. In an attempt to change his mental subject, he recalled that the King’s people may be in danger. The group was headed there now to see if they could help. Sora had talked about the Cornerstone that protected the kingdom and how powerful the Queen was. He had said that she could create a light spell that was so strong it could clear an entire room of large heartless.

But something had happened recently that had put everyone on that world in danger. The others had little knowledge on what they were dealing with. Sora and Kairi were far more concerned with Riku getting better for the moment, though. They often kept the conversations short and as light as they could manage it. Riku didn’t have the strength to really argue about it, so he let them distract him. But right now they were not here to distract him. He sighed heavily. After a few moments of staring at the ceiling listlessly, Riku pushed himself up and gingerly got out of bed. If he couldn’t sleep, maybe taking a walk could help. 

He left the room and wandered in a random direction. He discovered a load of rooms. One was a clothing closet. Hundreds of uniforms of various sizes were hanging up. Riku vaguely wondered if this hangar ship had been built for military or exploration use. Probably both. He eventually stumbled upon the mess hall and found Sora there much to his surprise. The boy was slumped over on the table, dead to the world. Riku chuckled to himself. Typical Sora, always sleeping somewhere other than a bed. He went over and took a seat across from him. Feeling playful, he called out,

“Wake up, you lazy bum!” Sora shot up in his seat with a yelp. He locked eyes with Riku and yelped again before falling off the bench. Riku fell about laughing. He could barely hear Sora’s murmured complaints over his laughter. He finally got it under control and leaned over the table to stare at Sora. 

“Riku, you jerk! Now I know you are feeling better… you are back to being a pain in my ass.” Grumbled Sora with a smile. Riku giggled again. He found it odd. He used to be so concerned about his image and now here he was giggling. He guessed having a few life-threatening incidents had a way making one change their priorities. Sora eventually picked himself up off the floor and sat back at the table. Riku flopped back into his seat, wincing when a few sore spots complained. “So, you couldn’t sleep, either, huh?” asked Sora idly.

“What do you mean either? You seemed to be sleeping fine to me.” Teased Riku. Sora stuck out his tongue. 

“Don’t give me that! Honestly, I was awake before. I don’t remember falling asleep…” answered Sora with a yawn. Riku nodded. He threw out another question, not feeling up to talking about his demons right then,

“What was keeping you up?” Sora sighed and stared off to the left for a moment. 

“Honestly, everything.” Riku nodded understanding. Those two words covered a lot. There was a lot going on that no one had expected the issues they were facing and everyone was struggling with how to handle it.

“I can see that. I know that I caused some of it.” Riku said guiltily. Sora shook his head.

“Don’t apologize. I am just glad you are alright! But there’s poor Ariel’s situation, the Queen is in trouble, I still don’t know what’s going on with the King and now there are more Heartless and Nobodies. Not to mention… home.” Said Sora sadly. Riku tentatively reached out and patted Sora’s hand. The boy shot him a grateful smile. Riku felt some of that guilt return. Things had not been the same on the Islands since they had returned. People had shrugged off Riku being gone so long. They just had filled in the gaps saying that he had been studying somewhere else. No one else had been on the Island when Maleficent and the Heartless had attacked. The world had just disappeared and reappeared. For the rest of the Island citizens, nothing had changed or happened. But for the trio, everything had changed. For one, few people remembered Sora at all. Selphie, Titus, and Waka could if he were standing right in front of them. But the moment he wasn’t, it was as if Sora never existed. Sora’s mom and home had disappeared. There was no trace of the boy that had actually been born on the world out of the three of them. Kairi came from Radiant Garden and as for himself, he grew up on the Island but something in him firmly believed that he wasn’t born there. 

But the trio had thought that maybe Sora was erased from the World’s memory because he was briefly erased and detained during the World’s reconstruction. Riku had a hand, indirectly, in his best friend losing his connection to his home. He had sworn to himself that he would find some way to fix it. Honestly, it had been the only reason that he had even agreed to go on the trip. He was hoping to speak to the King about the situation and get his help. But with everything happening the way it did, Riku never got the chance. He planned on bringing it to the King’s attention at some point in the near future though. 

“But yeah, so guess that has been keeping me up. So, what’s eating you?” Sora probed as he rested his face in hands. Riku grimaced.

“No need to rake over old stuff.” Grumbled Riku as he tried to deflect the conversation again. Sora scowled.

“Fine then, your Highness. Wallow in misery alone then. I guess I’ll go find a post to stand watch at or something.” Sora threw grumpily as he moved to leave the table. Riku was dumbfounded. That was one heck of a conversation turn. Why would Sora call him that?

“Look, I just don’t wanna talk about it. I am thinking about too much right now and needed a distraction.” Admitted Riku. Sora relaxed slightly. He sat back down with a sigh. “Why did you call me that just now?”

“What? Your Highness?” asked Sora with a frown. He nodded. “Oh, Donald called you Prince of some place I had never heard of. I mean, he called me Kairi’s knight so who knows what was going through his head.” Riku laughed again.

“Well, he got that right!” he teased. Sora made a face at him. 

“Stop it! You know it’s not like that!” Sora whined. Riku was surprised to see that a blush had started creeping on Sora’s face. A wicked grin crossed the pale boy’s face. 

“Oh really? Well that is not what your face is saying, lover boy.” He sing-songed. Sora groaned and buried his now really red face in his hands. Riku always took delight in picking on Sora about his obvious crush on the red head. Playfully teasing him by vying for Kairi’s attention every now and then. It was all in good fun, but he was well aware that he had no chance with the princess. He was far too serious. And besides she was crushing on Sora just as hard. A blind person could see it. They had spent a lot of time with each other in the last two years darting and dancing around each other like skittish fish. It was as equally irritating as it was amusing to watch. 

“Leave me alone, you icicle.” Grumbled Sora into table. Riku laughed again. “Why exactly did I miss you again?” Riku smirked at the familiar banter. This felt the closest to the way things had been before the Island was destroyed and went to sideways. Things were just simple dreams of children whose world seemed infinite and boring. Boy, would he love to go back in time and slap the child version of himself… hell, four years before would have been enough.  _ Well, hindsight and all that.  _ He thought sullenly. As he re-emerged from his thoughts, he found Sora watching him. 

“You ok? You had a faraway look on your face.” He said. Riku decided to be honest for once.

“Not really. But who on this ship is?” he answered with a shrug. Sora laughed bitterly. 

“Yeah, I know right?” he replied. A yawn caught Riku off guard and Sora followed immediately after. “I’m beat. Maybe I can get a few more hours before everyone else gets up.” Riku gave a half-hearted wave as his friend stood up. “You not comin’?” 

“Ummm…” Riku stammered. Sora rolled his eyes and came around the table. 

“Come on. I know the beds here are far more comfortable than the Pods are.” Said Sora as he hauled Riku to his feet. The exhaustion that he had been ignoring was now making itself heard. He swayed slightly as Sora continued to pull him out of the room. The light flicked off as he exited. The hallway was lit by small LEDs that lined the floors. They stopped in front of a door and it opened with a small hiss. Sora continued to drag him past a bunch of bunk beds. He noticed that the King’s Wizard and Captain were sharing one close to the door. 

Further into the room, single beds replaced the bunks. The beds were huge .  Riku figured it was meant to hold larger people. In one of them, Kairi was sleeping soundly. He and Sora could fit easily on it and not be squished. Sora wasted no time in forcing Riku onto the bed and tucking him in. Sora then crawled on the other side of Kairi and got comfortable. Riku lay in silence for a while letting the warmth of the bed relax him. His eyes slowly grew heavy and he fell asleep listening to the soft breathing of his friends beside him.

Riku woke to the sound of Captain Goofy cooing over how cute the three of them were. He groaned partly in embarrassment and partly in annoyance. He had really been enjoying his sleep. Kairi sat up slowly rubbing her eyes. She looked to the right and shook Sora awake while giggling quietly. Riku snorted when he could finally see his friend. Sora’s hair was sticking out in all directions. It looked like Sora had gotten zapped by lightning. His quiet laughter drew Kairi’s attention. She gasped in delight when she saw him next to her. She leaned over and hugged him gently.

“It’s nice to see you outside of that Pod Riku!” she said as she pulled away. “Are you feeling better?” 

“A bit, I am still sore in places but not too bad. Nothing a little more rest won’t fix.” He answered. Eventually, they all shuffled out of the bed and started their morning routines. Chip even stopped by to run another diagnostic on Riku. He noted that the Pod and worked wonders over the last few days and that the nanites that were left would finish their job in the next few days. So, no more med bay for him. Chip wanted him to continue resting when he could.

“Hey guys! We’re approaching the Walterlands, we should be in ship launching orbit within a handful of hours.” Said Dale excitedly. 

“Yeah! The King wants you all to join him and Princess Ariel to discuss strategy. I’ll be joining you as well. Dale will remain here and man the hangar.” Added Chip. The group made their way to the mess hall. The King and Ariel were conversing softly. Ariel was dressed in a white blouse with black trimming and a trailing fish tail back that was a seafoam green and sheer. Emerald green three quarters shorts covered her legs and there were white and green trainers covering her feet. She looked very different, but not in an unpleasant way. Riku mentally shook away the intrusive thoughts and greeted the two as he led the others into the room.

“Good morning, everyone.” Greets Ariel. The others respond happily as they all settle around the table. Suddenly, food flies into the room on floating trays and settles in front of everyone. It was oatmeal. Simple but filling. Riku’s stomach rumbled in anticipation, it had been a while since he had eaten a substantial meal. Fruit, granola, honey and other topping were flown in to the center of the table. A pitcher of juice and water followed. Everyone blessed their food and began to eat. As the food slowly started to disappear, Chip entered the room and scampered up onto the table next to the King. Mickey spoke,

“Now that Chip is here we can start discussing our course of action. Chip?” 

“Thank you, your Majesty. We are planning on taking the Gummi ship down to the surface rather than the hangar, it makes a good fall back point. As we all know, it can easily become necessary.” Explained Chip.

“Will this be a new ship? Or did we manage to save the old one?” asked Sora.

“We were able to recall the ship as well, since the disembarkment did require the ship to actually land. We were able to remote pilot it back to the hangar.” Answered Chip. Sora nodded, satisfied. 

“Thank you for that update, Chip. Donald, Goofy and I are traveling down to see exactly what the state of the world is. Anyone here is welcome to come. But I warn you that you should remain together and be cautious. People may still be spooked if not still under siege. We just escape our last unfortunate encounter by luck and the skin of our teeth.” Mickey said. 

“Well, I am more than willing to help,” said Sora.

“Me, too!” Kairi added. Riku nodded when Mickey looked to him. 

“If it’s alright with everyone, I would like to go as well.” Said Ariel. “It’s the first world I’ve seen outside my own and I am eager to help.” The king assured her that this was fine. After the food was finished, everyone went their separate ways to prepare for leaving. Riku spent some time testing his mobility in a training room Chip had led him to. He was still pretty sore but nowhere near what he felt like before. He stared at his own reflection in one of the many floor length mirrors that lined the walls of the room. The bags under his eyes looked like bruises against his still too pale skin. But what easily caught his attention was the series of scars that ran down the length of his shoulder and upper arm. The shark had gotten him good. There were also some thinner scars from the lightning attack he was hit with but they were barely noticeable.

Unfortunately, his dominant arm had taken damage from that shark attack. It pulled and throbbed if he raised his arm too high or brought too far across his body. It definitely hurt when he summoned his blade. The weight of the weapon added to the burden. He was clearly not going to be able to wield the weapon like he used to. Dread pierced him at the thought. If there really was a threat, he was not going to be useful for long. He sighed in frustration. What was he going to do? He had nothing to fall back on if wielding his weapon became too much. Well, nothing that he would want to use. 

His mind wandered back to the fight in Atlantica. His friends had vanished, possibly had been killed by the witch and he wanted nothing more than to end her. He had moved to confront Ursula when Ariel had darted forward. He had reacted instinctively and placed a shield in front of Morgana’s nasty spell. He had been impressed when the mermaid didn't slowly but dove under it and the witch before decking her from behind. Riku returned his attention to Ursula. The witch was charging up an attack. He conjured another shield in time to block the hit. The spell dissipated and Riku returned one of his own. Before he knew it the two were trading dark blows with each other. 

“Here I thought all blade users were of the Light.” sneered the witch after taking another pulse aura to the face. Riku flinched. She had a point. They should be, he should have been. But he let himself be misled. However, that was then and he had learned plenty from his mistakes. He launched another volley of dark magic at the cephalopod before following them with a light based attack. The light attack had hit her dead on leaving a nasty wound. Ariel would rejoin the fight not long after that.

The dark based spells he had been using did not come from his time within the Dark, no those had been with him since childhood. He had always been able to produce that shield, and the other spells seemed to just materialize. He never intentionally tested them. They frightened other people. So he never used them, even though he did not feel one way or another about them. He had not been lying that night when he said he was not afraid of the Darkness. There was something about it that almost called to Riku. Sometimes it still did. But the rightness was easily eclipsed by guilt. 

Riku hardened his resolve to keep that magic locked up tight unless it was absolutely necessary to use it. He released his Keyblade with a sigh. A moment later, Chip’s chipper voice announced that they were closing in on the Walterlands and that everyone should rest up in preparation for the launch. He heeded the engineer’s advice and went back to the barracks. Hopefully, things would not be as bad as they all feared. 

Three hours later, Sora was shaking him awake. The next several minutes flew by as everyone readied themselves for the mission ahead. Chip gave Ariel and Riku a quick rundown on how the badges that saved both of their lives actually worked. Ariel was given her own before they all departed for the ship hold below. Everyone settled into their previous seats with Ariel taking the empty one next to Riku. With a countdown from Chip, they were off. .

The area around them was clear there were nothing but stars around them. The world before them was colorful, covered with swirls of yellows, greens and blues. As they dropped through the atmosphere of the planet the colors melted into shapes and then shapes into structures. In the area they were flying over there was a lush forest with trees for miles. Looming above was an alabaster castle with gleaming towers with bright blue roofs. The Walterlands were beautiful.

“Oh how pretty!” Ariel gushed softly. Riku was about to agree with her when suddenly Mickey cries,

“Look out!” From behind the castle gate a ball of fire streaked towards the ship. It impacted the side within seconds of the warning. There was a roar and then shrieks of metal and the other frightened passengers. Then Riku’s stomach fell out of his body as the ship nosedived dangerously. Riku could only stare in fascinated horror as the ground and trees rushed up to meet the ship. Sora valiantly managed to just miss the trees and guide the failing ship into a nearby clearing. Even though Riku had braced for the impact, the actual event was still jarring. The ship jerked and flopped violently as it skidded along the forest floor. It finally skid to a stop inches away from the trunk of a particularly large tree. Smoke started to invade the cabin forcing everyone to quickly vacate the vehicle.

Once outside and everyone had finished expelling the smoke from their lungs, Ariel and Sora quickly quenched the flames using water and blizzard spells. Once they finished, Chip and Mickey quickly assessed the damage. Thankfully it was not as bad as it first seemed. A lot of the damage was cosmetic. Gummi ships were tougher than they looked. However, one of the engines was clipped. This is what caused the crash. Chip assured the group that it could be fixed with time and the supplies still aboard the ship. However, Mickey notes that the hostile response is unusual. A young engineer named Gadget usually makes contact with ships first before activating the anti-air defenses. It was standard protocol. Riku felt the dread from earlier returning slowly.

“Well, that means she’s not the one with access to ‘em.” Goofy worried. Mickey nodded. 

“Ok everyone, we need to tread lightly. Assume that everyone is potentially hostile. We need to know exactly what is going on, but we also need to repair this ship.” He said.

“Why don’t we split up, I can take the old escape route to enter the castle, there are only a handful people that know about it.” Offered Goofy. Mickey thought it over.

“Sounds reasonable but I don’t want you going alone.” Said the King, his tail twitching in agitation. 

“What if some of us go with him?” suggested Sora.

“Sounds good. Take both of the Princesses with you.” Says Mickey. Sora and Riku blink. “Sora has some knowledge of how Gummi Ships work and can help us get the ship fixed sooner. We want to conserve the badges for a real emergency. And I want to conserve as much of Riku’s stamina as possible. We want him at the best he can manage if it comes down to a fight. We have not encountered any Heartless or Nobodies yet but that doesn’t mean they are not here. The Princesses have Keyblades. They should be able to hold off lower level monsters if necessary… once inside the castle, the Cornerstone should protect you.” 

“The Cornerstone?” echoed Kairi and Ariel.

“It is a great light source that powers the protections around our world. It keeps out monsters like Heartless. However, there are ways around it. I have a slight connection to it through being King but nowhere near the connection that my wife has with it. I can feel that the Cornerstone is doing its job, but it has grown weaker for some reason. But those within the castle walls should be fine.” Explained the King. 

Riku was definitely annoyed at being sidelined, but he couldn’t argue with the King’s logic. Even as they made plans, enemies were probably attempting to find them. By splitting up, it was less likely that the infiltrating group would be spotted if their enemies were looking in the opposite direction. Not only that those left behind were also the more experienced fighters and more likely to survive an encounter. They were essentially bait. Goofy would see the princesses to the safest place on the world. Then if things got truly bad they can return to the ship or have Dale return them to the hangar. 

“Ok. Well, here Kairi. Take this.” Says Sora as he walks up to her. The two exchanged something. Kairi blushes prettily after Sora whispers something to her. The two part as Chip calls for Sora’s help. Kairi turns to face Riku and blushes harder. The smirk that had been hovering on his face grew. 

“Don’t. You. Dare!” she playfully growls. He laughs. She sticks her tongue out at him.

“Fine. Just be careful out there, Princess.” He teases as he holds out a fist. She wanders closer and bumps it with her own. He notices Goofy and Ariel wandering over to collect his friend for their trip. The captain was slipping some sort of device into his pants pocket.

“You, too, Prince Riku,” she snorts. Riku rolls his eyes as she laughs. 

_______________________________________________________________

Kairi steps lightly as she follows Goofy through the forest they landed in. It was surprisingly full. They had left the guys behind a while ago and were slowly making their way around the castle exterior. It was nerve wracking. She could see why Sora was somewhat reluctant to get involved. If Sora’s previous adventures were anything like this, he must have nerves of steel by now… or none. The group moved in no real discernable direction. She was not sure that they weren’t lost. Before they had set off, Goofy had explained that the castle had been littered with various escape routes in case the tenants ever needed to get away in a hurry. The entrance they were looking for would let them out near the Royal library. 

When Ariel questioned whether Goofy was sure of where they were, he replied that as Captain of the Guard he was required to know the layout of the castle from top to bottom. He was fairly certain they were headed in the right direction. The route was long on purpose, less chance of anyone stumbling onto them as they came and went. Their conversation was cut short when Heartless and Nobodies and appeared from black portals. The Heartless were the simple Shadows, the inky creatures that crawled on all fours. She had fought these before at the World that Never Was. The Nobodies were Dusks, the white wispy ones. Kairi recalled Sora describing them to her. 

Her Keyblade had materialized in her hand, recognizing the danger. She held it a loft. As she looked around her, she saw that they were surrounded by the creatures. She and her companions were pressed back to back. 

“These monsters aren’t ‘ard ta beat, but they’re tricky. Don’t let them out of yer sight!” warned Goofy before he bellowed a war cry and threw his shield at a Shadow causing it to dissolve into smoke and release the heart that was trapped in it. Kairi hardened her resolve and raced to meet a Dusk that charged at her. It flattened itself into a thinner form as it sped towards her. Kairi ducked the attack with ease and brought the blade down on the creature as it sailed by her. The creature shrieked as it was knocked to the ground. Kairi struck the prone creature again and it let out another mournful wail before slithering away again and attempting to attack Ariel. The princess was dealing with another Dusk and had her back exposed. 

Kairi chased the creature down and swung her blade again catching the creature’s legs and sending it spiraling. She felt for the light within herself and then let it go. A bolt of white energy flew from her Keyblade and clipped the faltering monster and it exploded into harmless energy. A giddy energy had begun to fill Kairi. She was completely absorbed in the fight. The hairs on the back of her neck suddenly stood up and she turned in time to see a Shadow falling towards her from above. She pivoted on her foot and brought her blade to bear in a swift strike. The Shadow was batted away and disappeared in a shower of sparks.    

The sky abruptly darkened, catching Kairi off guard. She turned back to see Ariel with her hand out in front and blade raised skyward, sparks leaping from her fingertips and the tip of her Keyblade. Several forks of lightning suddenly slammed into the Earth turning a couple of Shadows and several Dusks to ashes. The glowing hearts floated serenely into the sky as two more shadows leapt at the former mermaid. Ariel swiped at them with her Keyblade, nailing one and knocking it back. The other took a shield to the gut and vanished. Goofy then took another out with a magic enhanced fist. Kairi blinked stupidly for a second. The captain was surprisingly strong. 

“Keep your eyes on the fight, Princess!” he called as he caught the shield as it returned to him. Kairi refocused her attention on the remaining creatures. There were two Dusks and another shadow headed for her. She charged another light bolt and let it fly. It nailed the Shadow vaporizing it. The Dusks screeched as they reached for her. Kairi leapt backwards to avoid the attack. She managed an awkward swipe that clipped one across the face. The other landed a hit. She hissed as a burning pain raced across the top of her shoulder and she stumbled. She lost her footing and landed on the ground. The Dusks regrouped and charged her again. Before she could even make a move to defend herself, Goofy’s winged shield was flying over her and knocking both Dusks flying. Then all she could see was green. Goofy stood resolutely in front of her. 

“Make a run for it, Kairi! I will follow.” He ordered. She immediately stumbled to her feet and ran. Ariel followed. Her heart was drumming in her throat. Her breaths were coming in heaves. Her muscles were burning. She was definitely not in the necessary shape for this kind of activity. She pushed on however. Just as she reached a break in the tree line, another set of portals deposited another set of enemies before them. Both she and Ariel slid to a stop. Kairi growled in frustration as her Keyblade reappeared. These monsters were different. They were taller and seemed to be wearing ill-fitting uniforms and pieces of armor. Their helmets made grating noises that sent shivers down Kairi’s spine as they clinked, scrapped, and clacked against each other.

“Eat this!” she cried as she released a wave of light from her Keyblade. The wave slammed into two of the soldier like Heartless, knocking them down. But they did not disappear. The others took that as the cue to charge and moved towards the two Princesses. Ariel threw a light wave of her own at the advancing line, another two monsters were sent flying. They flew past the two that Kairi had knocked down as they returned to the fight. 

“They won’t fall,” groaned Ariel as she knocked one away. A bolt of light at point blank range finally reduced it to smoke. Kairi gasped for air as she danced around one’s attacks. Their red claws barely missing her midsection. She got a lucky strike in and stabbed the creature and forced a bit of fire into the creature’s gut causing it to explode. That had been the first elemental spell Sora had taught her besides how to summon light magic. She hissed as her injured shoulder throbbed from the action.

“Let’s go!” came a cry from behind them. Suddenly, Goofy leapt over them and slammed his shield into the ground. The ground shook violently. A strong shockwave swept all the remaining Heartless off their feet. Two landed on their heads and vanished. The others landed in a heap. “Let’s leave! The tunnel shouldn’t be too much further from here.” The trio took off. Finally they reached another cropping of trees that seemed to end at a cliff face. Kairi and Ariel looked around bewildered. Goofy turned and headed to fallen log nearby. He easily lifted it and moved it aside. The girls wandered over and saw he had uncovered a patch of discolored grass. The man ripped the grass up, revealing that it was a fake cover on a tunnel. He gestured for them to head down. Kairi crouched down and slid down into the hole.  The drop wasn’t far. But it was dark in the tunnel. She moved away from the entrance. Ariel dropped in a moment later, and then Goofy, pulling the cover closed behind him. He and the girls slowly made their way down the tunnel. Goofy led them with a small light he had picked up by the entrance. No one spoke, a heavy tension had rendered them mute. The only sounds were the echoes of their footsteps as they traversed the tunnel. Kairi wrestled with bouts of claustrophobia. There was not much room in the tunnel. Two people could barely walk side by side even squished together. 

“Halt!” cried a voice out of the darkness before them. Kairi froze. There was no way they could defend themselves in this tight space. Her eyes strained in vain to make out a shape in the inky curtain before them. This was bad.

“I thought you said no one should know about these tunnels,” hissed Kairi. 

“I said only a handful of people knew about them.” He hissed back. “And I think I recognized that voice.” 

“Who is it, then?” hissed Ariel as she pressed closer to her and Goofy. 

“Little John! Still causing mischief I see!” Goofy called down the corridor.

“Now hows would you know ‘bout that, Capt’n Goof?” came the reply.

“A little Gadget tol’ me you t’weren’t up to no good.” Goofy replied easily. Kairi could only watch in confusion as the two bantered back and forth.

“Dad? Dad? Is that you?” called another, younger, voice. Goofy’s breath hitched in his throat. 

“Maxie!” He cried joyously. The echoes of footsteps suddenly pierced the silence after Goofy’s declaration. The noise grew louder and louder until out of the dark appeared another canid. This one was tall and lanky like Goofy, but he was younger with hair. He leapt at Goofy and hugged him. The older man hugged him just as fiercely. “Maxie! You’re alright!” Goofy mutters thickly. This was Goofy’s son! Wow… Sora never mentioned that Goofy had a son. 

“You got Gadget’s message! Is the King with you?” Maxie asked as the two released each other. 

“Yeah, but our ship was blown from the sky! Me and the Princesses were tryin’ ta get ta the castle. What happened, Max?” Goofy asked. Now that Goofy was holding the light properly again, Kairi could see Max’s features. He was easily Goofy’s clone. 

“Oh boy, I- I think I—” he started, but another voice interrupted him.

“That rat Mortimer Mouse happened.” Kairi looked to see a bipedal fox dressed in a green tunic and pants. Behind him stood several people. Goofy looked over at the man. He was now serious again.

“The Duke? What has he done, Robin?” growled Goofy. Kairi was definitely seeing different aspects of Sora’s friend today. This was the first time she had ever seen the jovial captain angry. Worried, happy, excited? Sure. But never angry. 

“He took over the castle!” blurted Max. “He closed down the castle, claimed that it was the Queen’s wish. Then suddenly the Heartless and these other monsters start appearing everywhere. Weirdly dressed guards suddenly place all the surrounding areas in lockdown with a curfew and everything! They disbanded the Musketeers! No one has had any contact with anyone from the castle since Gadget broadcasted her SOS. We don’t know whether the Queen is even safe.” Kairi felt her heart drop. Things were a lot worse than they anticipated. Goofy reaches into his pocket and removes a small handle-held device. Clicking the button, he speaks,

“Chip, come in. This is the Captain.” There was a burst of static before Chip’s distorted voice came through the device,

“I read ya, Captain.” 

“We have made it to the infiltration point. Was met by an advance group containing Max and the merry men led by Robin. I need to speak to the King directly. I have some bad news.” He replied quickly. There was another burst of static before Mickey spoke,

“Goofy, what happened? Is Max alright? Has anyone heard from Minnie or my brother?” 

“We made it to the tunnel. There were Heartless and Nobodies present. Yes, Max is fine, sire. Unfortunately, no one has heard from her or anyone within the castle proper for at least a week. Duke Mortimer has seized control of the castle and has locked it and the kingdom under martial law. He claims its Minnie’s will, but it’s nothing but lies!” answered Goofy angrily. What followed shocked Kairi. King Mickey began to swear vehemently. As Kairi glanced about Robin, Max, and some of Robin’s men looked completely stunned, too. The King clearly was not a habitual swearer, but he certainly knew them. 

“Didn’t know the mouse had it in ‘em,” Chuckled a rather overweight bear. Robin just shook his head, an amused smirk ghosting his muzzle. Kairi recognized the bear’s voice from earlier, this must be the Little John Goofy was speaking with earlier. Goofy finally managed to calm the irate king.

“Just- ok… Tread lightly in the castle. It should still be free of monsters but Mortimer may have paid off people. Not even he can pull off a coup like this without inside help. Find my wife and Lady Daisy as quickly as possible. We need to regain control of the castle as quickly as possible before this monster situation gets any worse,” Said Mickey forcefully. Goofy nodded eagerly at every sentence the King spoke. It would have been funny if things weren’t so dire. 

“ I won’t let ya down, yer Majesty,” Said Goofy. 

“I know you won’t! Robin!” the King called.

“Yes, your Highness?” answered the fox.

“I hate to ask this of you, but I need your help. My people may be at risk of attack right now. Can you use your network and men to help protect them?” begged the King. Robin removed his hat with one hand and bowed at his waist. 

“It would be an honor, King Mickey. After all, you got us a better Sheriff and standard of living in Nottingham. It’s the least I can do,” He replied easily. 

“Thank you. Goofy, good luck and let me know the moment you learn anything,” Ordered the King. The captain assured him that he would and the two signed off. 

“Hey John, wanna take some of your boys and go see if you can’t help the King get his ship running? I am going to spread the word about our dear Duke. Will, you’re with me. Max, take your men and help get your father into the castle without being seen,” Ordered Robin. 

“But they’re not my…” protested Max. A black rabbit with a white face stepped forward. He was dressed in fine armor and had a scar that crossed over his right eye.

“The King nor the Queen have disbanded anything officially. Therefore, you are still the de facto leader of the Musketeers right now,” said the rabbit sternly. “Don’t act bashful now.” 

“Oswald! I would have taken you for dead!” exclaimed Goofy, surprised. Oswald nodded shortly.

“Indeed! But your boy dragged me away ‘fore I could attempt to behead that sorry excuse of a Duke! Always told Mickey those nobles brought nothin’ but trouble,” He said scornfully. Max flinched. This was quite the drama. Suddenly, Goofy jumped.

“Argh! I am sorry. Everyone this is Princess Kairi of Radiant Garden and Queen Ariel Sewyn of Dane and Princess of Atlantica.” He said, gesturing to her and Ariel behind him. “They are also Keyblade bearers like the King,” Robin bowed politely. Oswald bowed his head briefly. For such a cute looking person, Oswald seemed rather intense.

“I am Lieutenant Captain Oswald Warren. I am second in command of his Majesty’s Royal Army.” 

“Maximilian Goof, at your service ladies,” Said Max with a short bow as Kairi made eye contact. The fox gave a sweeping bow as he introduced himself.

“I am Robin of Locksley, the pleasure is mine, Highnesses,” She and Ariel returned the greetings before returning to the previous conversation. 

“How are we going to sneak in if this Duke has spies and guards everywhere?” asked Kairi. Max spoke up,

“Simple, we’re going to provide a distraction for you,” Kairi felt uneasy at that. 

“What happens if you get caught?” she asked concerned.

“Nothin’ that you have to worry about,” said the Lt. Captain. She did not like that answer. Before she could protest again, the men in the tunnel began shuffling as they arranged themselves into the predetermined groups. A small band of men followed Little John out of the tunnel. Kairi pressed up against one of the walls to make more room. Robin was still talking logistics with Oswald and Goofy. Eventually, Robin took another section of his men and headed out. Now only a few men, Oswald, Goofy, Max and the Princesses were left. 

“Ok, so here’s the plan. Initially, we were going to use the passage to re-enter the castle and hopefully be able to retake it,” explained Max. “That’s why Robin and his men were here. I called them for help. No one would notice them leaving.” 

“But now, we are going to guide you into the castle and distract any guards while you see if you can locate Lady Daisy or Queen Minnie.” Finished Oswald. 

“Would we be able to do that in such a short amount of time? We would need to search for them room by room.” Ariel pointed out. Oswald nodded.

“I have a secret weapon in mind for this,” said Goofy. “The Royal Archivist Dame Sylvia Marpole is a good friend of mine and she practically lives in the library. If she holds true to form she may still be there! If anyone would know where the other two are she would!” That made some sense. At least, they had a starting point. She also remembered that Goofy mentioned that the passage they were in let out close to the library. Even better. Things seemed less overwhelming with a plan. 

“Ok. Less talking and more doing,” groused Oswald. The rabbit was clearly getting impatient. His right foot was tapping the ground in a rapid rhythm. The group nodded in agreement. 

Kairi found herself walking next to Ariel with Goofy and his son directly in front of them. Oswald was bringing up the rear behind them. Now that most of the excitement was over for now, Kairi’s mind began to wander. She wondered how the boys were doing with the ship and if Riku had expired from boredom yet.  She snorts at the mental image of Riku kneeling over with no explanation and the others flipping out about it.

“Good joke?” asks Ariel from her left. Kairi looks up at the woman. Guilt stirred in her chest. She had been rather rude to Ariel back in Atlantica. And had blamed her for Riku being hurt. She had acted hastily due to panic. It did not help that Ariel had graciously helped them restore Riku a few days after she herself had recovered. The knot in the girl’s grew another three sizes. She opened her mouth to answer Ariel and instead she blurted,

“I’m sorry.” 

“What?” asked Ariel bewilderedly. Kairi felt her cheeks heat up. 

“I am – sorry about yelling at you.” She muttered with her head down. 

“Oh, I—it’s ok. I know things were a bit crazy.” Says Ariel with an awkward chuckle. Kairi felt the guilt in her chest melt into a puddle of relief and gratitude. Ariel was very forgiving. Before they could continue their conversation, the group started to slow down. They must be getting closer. Goofy turned to the girls once they stopped.

“We are about to enter the castle. The men ahead of us will go first in small groups and led the guards away from the library and nearby corridors if there are any. Once that is done I will lead us to the library. Max and Oswald will help cover us if any guards show up.” He whispered. The girls nodded. Then everything went silent. Goofy extinguished the light he had been holding, plunging the tunnel into complete darkness. Her heart began to drum against her ribs like a caged bird. She took a deep breath and willed it to slow. Now was not the time to panic. A few breaths later and her heart began to settle but started up again when light suddenly poured into the tunnel again. Then it disappeared. Ah, the men were moving into the castle. This patterned repeated itself three more times. Each time, her group moved a little closer to the entrance. Soon they were standing in front of what looked like a wall.

“Alright, on my three, everyone move,” said Max quietly. Kairi swallowed as she tried to will her heart back into her chest. It just left her mouth feeling drier than it already was. Her Keyblade was suddenly in her hand. Why? It seemed to always appear when she needed it. She was hoping it was just a comfort thing, because she was not up to fighting just now. Her palms were sweating like crazy. She would probably drop her weapon. So lost in her own head, Kairi almost missed Max’s signal. She barely caught the 3. Goofy rushed forward and she followed.

The hallway she stumbled into was massive. She, Sora, and Riku could probably stand on each other’s shoulders and still not touch the ceiling. She continued after Goofy. The hallway was clear save for a few wall hangings that look as if they had been torn through. She could hear the echo of the fights between the other men and the guards down the hallway. They raced across the hallway to a set of large double doors. Goofy went to open them and was shocked. The other stood bewildered as he continued to try and unlock the doors and failed. Kairi looked about nervously. They were wasting time. It was no telling when the guards were coming back. 

“What’s wrong Dad?” said Max suddenly. Goofy shook his head, 

“I don’t know. There may be an enchantment of some kind on the door.” He said. Max frowned and then perked up. 

“Move a second, I think I know something that would help! Oswald taught it to me!” he said. Goofy moved to the side. Max stood in front of the door and closed his eyes. He took a deep breath and made a fist. After moment, it turned green. He then swung at the door. His fist stopped about an inch from the wood. The green energy spread out revealing a giant panel of energy before the door. Once the energy was spent the panel faded away again. Kairi frowned.

While it was frustrating to be stuck outside the library, it did tell them something important was being kept in there. Max charged up another fist and threw it at the shield again. Once again green energy dashed along the barrier and eventually reached the end and vanished. But something remained behind this time. Right where Max was punching the wall, thin, green cracks had appeared. Max grinned triumphantly. He continued to punch the barrier until it shattered. Goofy gave a jubilant laugh as he hugged his boy from behind. 

“That was amazing, Maxie!” he gushed. Max chuckled weakly. He stood back and rubbed his neck shyly.

“It is called Magic break. It’s meant to counter magic shields and block some attacks.” He said. Max tried to pull on the door, but it would not budge. Ariel let out a groan of frustration. Kairi suddenly recalled that Keyblades could open any lock. She stepped forward.

“Hey, maybe I can open it.” She offered as her Keyblade appeared. Goofy slapped his forehead.

“O’ course! The Keyblade is—” he started.

“A giant key!” finished Max. Kairi grinned at their antics. She moved closer to the door and held the key next to the lock. A beam of light shot into the keyhole and they all heard a loud click. Kairi pulled the door opened and looked around. There were shelves full of books. She motioned for the others to come in as she moved further into the room. Riku would probably like it here. Despite his edgelord persona, he loved reading. She could see him spending time in a library like this. The door closed behind them will a loud clang. As the reverberation faded away, Kairi picked up a strange rustling sound. It seemed to be growing louder.

“What the— ” came a protest from Max, “Oswald is trapped out there and we’re trapped in here!”

“Hey guys, I think—” she whispered. Her warning was cut off as a large dark colored book suddenly flew into view. It was flapping its pages like wings. It pages were transparent and waving unnaturally. It swooped low and attempted to hit Kairi but she quickly dodged it. She knocked it from the air with a clumsy slam of her Key. When she looked where the book had come from, she saw three more winging their way towards them. The others were also on high alert. In a clash of paper and weapons the books were routed. As they caught their breath, the books began to shudder on the ground. Then small smoke like blobs began to rise from them. They let out mournful wails as they dissolved into nothing. The books shrank and turned solid again. They were scuffed and torn in some places, but mostly whole.  _ What was that?  _ She thought.

“What were those?” whispered Max tersely, echoing her thoughts. Ariel and Kairi both exchanged shrugs. Goofy looked thoughtful. After a moment, he shook his head.

“Don’t know, but now’s not the time to wonder. We need to see about finding Sylvia.” He said. Kairi looked around the room. The shelves were tall and just as long. They spanned the room in a semicircle. Where would they even start? A scream rang through the room. Goofy rushed forward, crying out, “Sylvia!” Another cry rang out. This time Max followed his father calling,

“Roxanne! Where are you?!” There came an answering call of Max’s name. It seemed to come from the book shelves on their left. The men made a run for it in that direction. Kairi and Ariel followed. As they traversed the shelves, more of the books began sliding off their shelves and chasing after them. They wove and dodged between attacks. The areas between the shelves were too tight from them to fight them flat out. Kairi cried out as one book slammed into her back. She was thrown onto the marble floor, jarring her shoulder. Bile crept up her throat and the room spun from the pain. She was suddenly dragged to her feet and her arm hoisted over someone’s shoulder. 

“Come on, Kairi! No slowing down!” said Ariel as she started running again. She was limping alongside her as fast as she could. The books continued to harry and attack them. The screams of the other trapped women were growing closer. The rustling of the pages and clacking of the books covers were almost drowning them out. The princesses continued to follow Max and Goofy’s backs that were barely visible between the falling pages from books as they slammed into the sides of shelves, each other, and some lucky hits from flailing fists and Keys. Finally, they reached a clearing area. It was littered with hovering books, rulers, and several floating feather pens in various colors. The books looked similar to the possessed ones from before. The pens’ feathers were messy and stringy, their nubs had grown into black needles. They were all focused on an object in the center. 

It was a large desk and several chairs. The chairs were bucking and rocking like horses around the desk. On top of the desk, were two female canines. One was an older woman with red hair and glasses. Her hair was up in a loose bun with pin stuck in it. Some tendrils had fallen down around her face. She was wearing a simple black dress and a white shawl. A pair of glasses hung from a chain around her neck. The other one was a younger woman. She had brown hair pulled back in a simple ponytail with a small side bang left dangling and wearing a simple purple dress. They were both on their knees using normal books to shield themselves from attacks. 

Suddenly, three of the fountain pens dove at the desk. The older woman managed to knock two away with the book before being forced to block the third with her hand before it nailed the young girl in her face. She screamed as the point went through her hand. Kairi could only stare in horror. More of the pens dove for the stranded women. Once again Goofy’s blue winged shield sailed through the air. It clipped the pens sending them spiraling into the wall and getting them trapped. Another scream drew Kairi’s attention to the desk. The older woman and yanked the pen out of her hand. She snapped the pen in two with her fist and dropped it. The Pen shrunk and turned back into a normal fountain pen, albeit a broken one. Another formless blob floated away with a quiet moan. Goofy’s shield floated back to its owner, taking out a ruler and two books on its way back. Ariel released Kairi and sent a blast of lightning at the remaining books turning them to ashes. The remaining pins and ruler attacked the group in en masse. Kairi concentrated and sent a burst of light at them. Another wave of green energy collided with the chairs just as hers hit its targets. She looked to her right to see Max lowering his hands. A loud wail echoed around the room as the last of the phantom blobs faded away. A tense silence fell over the room as the monsters’ cries died away. 

“Sylvia!” Goofy said as he rushed to the desk. He took the older woman in his arms, examining her injured hand. Max rushed up to the younger one with a relieved,

“Roxanne!” She cried out his name and fell into his arms. Kairi quickly put two and two together, Goofy might be seeing Sylvia. Max and Roxanne must be the same. Kairi turned to face Ariel when she heard her sigh. The redhead had a bittersweet expression on her face. Kairi went to ask what was wrong when it hit her. Ariel had lost the man she loved not too long ago. This must be hard for her.

“Hey Kairi, Ariel!” called Max. Kairi turned back around to see Max waving them over. They approached the desk and introduced themselves. As they did so, the desk began to make a rattling noise. There came grating noise and then two small paws reached on top of the desk. Suddenly, the head and shoulders of a young mouse appeared,

“Gosh! I thought I’d never get out!” she complained as she dragged herself onto the desk. She was wearing a similar tabard to the ones worn by Chip and Dale, except she was wearing a plain tunic under hers. 

“Oh Gadget! I am so sorry!” apologized Sylvia. “I just panicked. I did not want you to get hurt!” 

“It’s quite alright! No harm done!” she replied. She spotted Goofy.  “Oh Captain! You have returned! Did you get my message?” Goofy nodded.

“We sure did! We rushed straight here!” he replied. She clapped her hands delightedly. Kairi thought she was adorable.

“Great! We really needed your help!” she said. Roxanne jumped in at this point,

“Mortimer took Daisy and locked her in the dungeons! When we threatened to go to the council, they locked us in here! Those monsters showed up not long before you got here!” The others exchanged worried glances. 

“What about the Queen?” asked Goofy. The three women bowed their heads. Kairi felt a shiver go down her spine. 

“She disappeared about a month ago, no one has seen her since.” Said Sylvia quietly.

**Author's Note:**

> Thanks for reading! I would love any comments! If I get enough comments and interest, I will post chapter 2 next week! If not, I will see you all in 2 weeks!
> 
> You can find me on Tumblr @[EbonyPhD](https://www.tumblr.com/blog/ebonyphd). I post direct links and info on my writing on my writer blog @[Wolfkeeper989](https://www.tumblr.com/blog/wolfkeeper989)


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